Stanford University burn control experiment could help ecosystem, cut fire risk in years to come

[@viniaful]

Native American Californians have been advocating at a state level for this for years. Hopefully, the state government listens!

[@boulderingbadger6179]

Could I ask for what specifically? A robot? Fire ecology?

[@MichaelDeHaven]

​@@boulderingbadger6179I can't speak for the OP. But I've seen several pieces on controlled burns. I don't remember their name but a group was recently granted portions of their land back. They were planning on using controlled burns to control mistletoe on the nut trees.

[@boulderingbadger6179]

@@MichaelDeHaven Yeah I think they were speaking to prescribed burning. Which is weird because nature has fire cycles in areas where natural fires keep the forest healthy. It is 11 years where I live for a total fire burn over. They helicopter log the heck out of the areas they do not want to burn around here like watersheds.

[@USMC1984]

I was a wild land firefighter for a long time… never once did I think of or were told of any chemical reactions or changes in the environment due to the extreme heat of a fire.

[@DRFelGood]

Impressive work !

[@patrickradcliffe3837]

That's all fine and dandy on the plains. The problem is the forests understory that is so choked dead plants that it is a literal tinderbox just waiting for an ignition source. Until Cal DOE wises up and relaxes permitting for proscribed burns to clear out the understory catastrophic wildfires are gonna be the norm going forward.

[@ConstantChaos1]

They need to reintroduce beaver

[@RandyCarpadus]

You can sure tell who here either didn't watch the video in it's entirety if at all, or didn't understand it! 🤣

[@pablohassan6897]

The Aboriginal peoples of Australia have been doing it for centuries. We Europeans have adopted the very idea, it makes a HUGE difference 👍👍

[@User-54631]

Well I sure hope so Australia is the most fire prone country in the world.

[@pablohassan6897]

@User-54631 our country fire brigades, all volunteers by the way, conduct controlled burn offs during winter and spring. I live in an area where it's mainly cereal crops, when there's a fire, you get pretty much every farmer turning up with their own fire fighting units, some have even bought retired fire trucks, and quite often, the fire has been extinguished before the Country Fire Service arrives.

[@jjperceval]

​@@pablohassan6897my area has trailers in streets with fire equipment that surround the local bushland. A wildlife park up on the central coast also fundraised to get a firefighting water trailer on account of the recent nsw fires

[@lumberjackdreamer6267]

Very interesting research. Thanks.

[@lorenwilson8128]

Protecting homes from wild fires comes down to three things: don't build in a forest, be allowed to clear the land around your home, and use heat-resistant building materials for the exterior of your house.

[@hottractor1999]

Good research.

[@larryjanson4011]

let cows and sheep graze on the land

[@no-barknoonan1335]

They do 🤦, but not all land is arable. If you're familiar with California in the slightest you'd have an understanding for the lengths the state goes to, to have livestock graze on the land we have.

[@stuwest3653]

Ignorant

[@Mrbfgray]

Fire is NOT optional in these lands, they are born to burn frequently w low intensity. *Many native tree species can't exist without fire including our beloved Giant Sequoias.* It's only a question of when and how they burn. Prior to Euro settlement, natives burned it seasonally, then ranchers and loggers, then around 1960 the feds stepped in and curtailed the old practices causing decades of fuel to build and fires become catastrophic. Cows and sheep have their place but are not a replacement for fire.

[@michaelWells-ef9bx]

Too Close to “EPA” they eat Goats ...

[@RandyCarpadus]

That has its own problems and if you had watched this, you would see they are doing that also. And this project isn't just for land clearing but also research on how fire affects the plants and soil.

[@uncralph4354]

Are these the same "scientists" that made us quit cutting fire breaks decades ago?

[@GoingtoHecq]

I have never seen something put out so much smoke while being good for the environment, but here it is. It's also not nearly so bad as smoke and soot from oil so...

[@bobabooey7088]

Nice going

[@drwho5437]

Gonna need it to be far faster and far bigger to effectively fight fires.

[@RandyCarpadus]

It's not for fighting fires. It's for research and control burns in grasslands

[@drwho5437]

@@RandyCarpadus Makes it an even bigger waste of money and time. Glad to see college students wasting their time on stupid shit!!

[@RandyCarpadus]

@@drwho5437 so it's over your head then? Got it.

[@primafacie9721]

@@drwho5437 Researching on how and when wild fires can change components of the dirt into a highly carcinogenic pollutant is stupid s%$#? Wild fire fighters and residents nearby to areas prone to wild fires strongly disagree with you. Seeing as how you seem to spend your time posting replies to youtube content that you obviously did not understand I seriously doubt your credentials on what is and is not a waste of time.

[@ernestmac13]

Hooefully this study can verify the viability of using cows and goats in oreventing fires.

[@davidlee50]

Um, don't forget to stay onsite at night for potential reignition. It can be cause by burning root systems that can travel to unburned areas. Thermal Viewing devices can also help. Mop up crews rock also.

[@RandyCarpadus]

That's generally not an issue with grasses and that soil type. Grass roots don't go lateral enough and don't carry fire. The only time subsurface burning is an issue with grasses is in peat soils. You are correct though with brush and timber. However, you might have missed the engines in standby and the firefighter following the burn bot.

[@Max_Chooch]

A tiny bit of wind will make that tiny stip of burned land completely irrelevant

[@woodstream6137]

It's not just about fire prevention, they're also studying the affects of fire at various times and temps on the soil and plant life. The last part talked about chromium in the soil being catalyzed into its harmful form by higher heats.

[@woodstream6137]

@PhantomRiver I interpreted it as studying the effects of various fires converting chromium into its hazardous form in different conditions. Didn't consider it a remediation effort.

[@FrankensteinDIYkayak]

they really need to thin out forests on the east coast so it doesn't end up like the west coast.

[@ConstantChaos1]

What? The geology and hydrology arent the same that's not going to happen, what they need is actually to reintroduce beaver

[@FrankensteinDIYkayak]

@@ConstantChaos1 thats true but the needed active management issue is the same. 99% of the east coast applaciians were clearcutted by 1900. since then there has been dramatic tree growth but the number of trees per acre is far above where it should be making for forestfire hazard. any solution would be hugely complex

[@ConstantChaos1]

@@FrankensteinDIYkayak ... that's what the beaver are for lol. Also beaver wetlands and the associated streams are natural fire-blocks, they also help to rehydrate the parched lands and mitigate flooding, once these natural fire breaks are in place controlled burns (which are necessary for the health of the ecosystem and used to stretch up to the great plains) become much easier. The solution isnt to modify degraded landscapes further it is to return to the solution that worked and emulates nature. The wood piles, standing dead wood, and brush piles are vital parts of the habitat in the area, artificially removing them chokes off the nutrient cycle and devestates the available shelter opportunities for wildlife. Periodical wildfires drive those animals to take shelter in the beaver maintained lands but otherwise leaves them alone for the most part and have been a part of these creatures evolutionary history for millennia and this is how they adapted. We removed the beaver which made the whole system fall apart, that is why they are known as a keystone species. The top priorities need to be in restoration of the beaver and preventative fire breaks with well controlled burns like they are doing, but preferably wider break with additional breaks behind it that are actively patrolled with drone assistance to spot any breaks and address them with the ground team and potentially air assist from the drones. (The air drones need to stay well away from the turbulent updrafts from the fire tho) We need to be fixing the ecosystem both because it is the right thing to do but also because it is the smart thing to do. It will help to manage wildfires in a way that doesnt further harm the environment, it will help replenish the aridifying landscape boosting both water levels and biodiversity lessening the impacts from the continuous droughts and lessening the threat of landslides by promoting plant growth, and mitigates catastrophic flooding with the huge water retention capabilities of their wetlands. The most important active management on the long term front we need to be doing is along the lines of rewilding waterways and building BDAs (beaver dam analogues) to reestablish degraded riparian zones and mimic the affects of the beaver before the habitat could actually support them building dams. Of course laws also need to be changed to protect them and hearts and minds need to be won, investments into land management also need to be made to equip the agencies to deal with it when beavers to be relocated and appropriate compensation needs to be made to those who are impacted. These are the steps we need to be taking, my field of study is ecology and previous to this I was in EMS and fire, the only things that could make this more my exact wheelhouse is if we were also talking about growing community gardens and free access fruit trees with permaculture with my background as a chef and engineering studies (on hiatus, I have adhd and needed a break lol) tho my field was biochem not ecological or civil engineering but imma probably dual eco and biochem once I take it back up. Clearing should be a last resort at best but one we dont actually use if that makes sense, it will only slow down the actual long term solution for many the regional issues. Admittedly beaver dont do anything against earth quakes but still they address 3 of the 4 natural disasters in the area, tho as extreme weather like hurricanes become more frequent they will also help with that flooding so at that point 4/5, isnt too bad for just letting animals go home. This solution would require us to periodically initiate larger scale controlled burns than just a fire stop that becomes a much simpler task with the ecosystems restored. It also saves us tons of cash in the long run and the upkeep costs would be the same as or less than that which we would be spending on addressing each one of the issues beavers address alone, let alone al at once.

[@indiaandrews6996]

The government needs to focus on the basics and tell everyone else with their hands out that either the voters need to pay more taxes or the government cannot provide additional services. By basics I mean fixing the roads, law enforcement, K-12 education, cleaning up trash that people don’t put in trash cans, and vandalism. That sort of thing. With the forests, there needs to be more money put into controlled burning and clearing.

[@dfirth224]

Exactly. 50 years of neglect and lawsuits have caused the megafires.

[@zilfondel]

100 years of chronic fire suppression and a hitter climate and this is what you get. Too many people also living in rural areas and being surprised when fires happen in a hot dry climate. 😯

[@handyandy8671]

it worked well in Hawaii didn't it????????

[@sherylchapman4168]

When hi tech replaces the more efficient and environmentally safe low tech grazing animals. Why?

[@dfirth224]

Grazing animals can't be used everywhere.

[@User-54631]

@@dfirth224which specific area are you referring to? Anyplace you can get that rig you can get a trailer of sheep. I’d bet that rig even weighs more. Which uses more gas contributing to climate change

[@woodstream6137]

​@@User-54631it's a study, you know research cause and effect,

[@RandyCarpadus]

1) animala have their own issues. 2) they are also using goats, which you would have seen if you watched the video all the way through. 3) the burn bot right now is for research in fires affect on soil and plants, which was also covered in the vid.

[@RandyCarpadus]

@@User-54631 try actually watching the video all the way through.

[@ezone913]

Shouldn't the students be protesting instead?

[@DaleMeese]

Destruction of the old growth grass.

[@yunaferro4836]

Laser from space will not stop that!!!

[@IanCthrwd]

Neither from campfires from idiots, lightning strikes and more idiots flicking their cancer stick butts.

[@kylesuperbaby9616]

Native Technique

[@Unadapted]

They'll be sure to not give any credit

[@PaulWisecarver]

@@Unadapted The Indigenous peoples of Washington state in America in the 1800's,...They set fires at the base of a mountain , but only after the early fall rains ,..The carbon left behind from the fire in the ground, would help new plant growth to generate new species of plants with seeds that blew into the area during the winter storms, A fire is somewhat like brushing your teeth ,..periodically,.... you need to clean out the older collected trash,.....that settled in one place,..... and start over again,...

[@RobertSpradling]

Here is a thought: The difference between California land management and Ranchers and Farmers land management is that California lets the brush become overgrown, California tries to stop fires when they occur - vs. Ranchers and Farmers land management that uses fire as a preventative tool to keep the forests healthy. Forest fires are a natural part of that ecosystem for many tens of thousands of years. The Ranchers and Farmers learned this understanding from the Native Americans because it is a deep part of their culture. California will continue to burn every year until we abandoned all the ill conceived environmental policies that have been put in place since the early 1960's. You can't fix STUPID!

[@RandyCarpadus]

Not exactly true. And most of the land burning is either ranch land or federal. The state owns relatively little land affected by fire. Most of the fires so far this year are grass and oak woodlands and is private property so so much for your land stewards doing their jobs...

[@hottractor1999]

Not really. Most everyone tries to stop the fires because the fuel load has gotten huge and will create catastrophic fires. That's why we need controlled burns and other strategies addressed in the video, to reduce the fuel so that fires can burn naturally without become huge destructive fires.

[@the_bait_shop]

Totally false. . the brush grows every year, even where control burns happen every single year. we do control burns all the time. . we don't just put out fires when they happen. . you have Zero time in California if you think that is how it works here.

[@eh3477]

Not much of a comparison: Most ranchers and farmers don't have millions of acres of forested lands. California must stop fires in areas where there is threat to homes and infrastructure, and that's just about everywhere today. Otherwise, in CA< federal and state agencies have robust programs for prescribed burning and thinning, but there's a 100 year backlog of work to do.

[@vanillasmerk5742]

Clear your land ppl. Everything else can burn and grow back. Simple.

[@HiThisIsMine]

How do you propose they take the “simple” step of “clearing the land”…?

[@ConstantChaos1]

Reintroduce beaver

[@PaulWisecarver]

When there is a wind that allows for the burning embers lifting upwards from the heat generated from the main ground fire and the blowing winds in the " primary burn zone ( with open flames ) ,..Your 10 feet of burning on the ground, that you can make with that machine as a fire break. Won't help a bit when the wind carries a burning ember longer than the "ground level burn zone" ,...only if you clear a zone "wide enough in distance " to "not allow",... a wind aided "second emission ember" ( glowing red ) ,... to travel into a new un-burnt zone ",... will you succeed in controlling and an outdoor fire. I'm a pyro from way back , And .I have watched local grass fires as a kid ,..to see just how fast a fire will " jump ahead",....in a wind driven fire,... and ,..it's faster than you think,..

[@RandyCarpadus]

This isn't for fighting fires

[@rafael_lana]

Writing a whole paragraph but didn't even watch the video 😂

[@RandyCarpadus]

@@rafael_lana yeah.. WTH?

[@tvviewer4500]

Maybe stop letting people build homes where wildfires happen

[@no-barknoonan1335]

Stop letting people build homes where tornados happen, stop letting people build homes where earthquakes happen, stop letting people build homes where hurricanes happen, Stop letting people build homes where volcanos happen, Where within the US would we have left? Of those areas left, which of those are of economic value? People reside where it makes sense to live, human societies didn't settle where we live now, based on a whim. There are disadvantages you aren't factoring into the equation, of living outside of the areas we live in now. If we didn't live where wildfires happen, we'd have to abandon nearly the entire state of California. Considering California is the economic powerhouse of the US, I'd hope you'd have a better plan than that. California produces 10% of US agriculture, it's the most productive agricultural state in fact. That's just 1 market, what about our oil production? What about our entertainment industry? What about our tech industry? Etc...

[@tvviewer4500]

@@no-barknoonan1335 wildfires are way different than earthquakes, hurricanes and tornadoes

[@stuwest3653]

@@tvviewer4500 You clearly don't know the geography of California. 25% of the state is susceptible to wildfire and 25% of the population live in these areas.

[@tvviewer4500]

@@stuwest3653 literally the entire state is susceptible to wild fires…. Where do you get your info? The same place your dad picks up your family’s welfare checks?

[@User-54631]

@@tvviewer4500well literally anything burns. That statistic comes from the California air resources board. Must be a library where his family picks up those checks. Sounds like maybe you need go with them.

[@msmoe8687]

As if that's a new concept, give me a break Cali is insanity on parade

[@User-54631]

Seems like there is some money and industry involved when fighting climate change

[@wbwarren57]

Key question: exactly how will Stanford fake the data for the study? Shouldn’t that be the first question ask about any Stanford study?

[@garymorris5974]

only you can prevent forest fires.

[@mannyechaluce3814]

Fire does not start without a spark, a fire cannot sustain without Fuel, humans causes the spark, and humans maintain the fuel

[@debbiej.2168]

Not always. Lightning causes many fires.

[@kylesuperbaby9616]

Thinks Lightning doesn’t exist 😂

[@HiThisIsMine]

This guy… you think someone is running through the dry lands of California, pouring fuel constantly on these fires.. that they apparently started? Fires have been started naturally forever. Spontaneous combustion IS a thing and can happen from the simple chemical breakdown during composting often combined with extreme heat. Fuel is the decaying vegetation. Dead plants and dry trees. Of course we all know this information doesn’t matter to you though… you’re just here to push your hippy values and spread conspiracies about how the human footprint starts and feeds fires.

[@9a8szmf79g9]

(Natural) Autoignition: doesn't exist. Because no one's recorded it. 🌚 And you can't even find search results about it happening naturally to flora. So it's "clearly not a thing".

[@HiThisIsMine]

@@9a8szmf79g9 - what are you talking about.. are you saying there is no record of naturally created fires?.. ie. lightening strike or lava flow?

[@Invisableme39]

Rage across the state…you don’t report what’s causing the fires.oh Ester…..it’s will be traded for bureaucracy…cause stand for is bureaucratic…..😂

[@mikestephens4442]

Now we have to pay scientist to do what we’ve done to do for thousands of years good God