Money to Burn: A prescription for destructive fire on public land?

Environmental coalition calls for investigation, files complaints

In a telephone press conference Wednesday, a coalition of citizens and environmental groups called on the Strickland administration to “rein in Ohio Division of Forestry (ODOF) and conduct a full public investigation of its disastrous prescribed burn program, including April’s 2870-acre Shawnee Forest fire, and financial incentives for DOF to burn.” The group explained in the phone conference why such an investigation must examine:

• ODOF knowledge of and failure to heed extreme fire danger conditions that indicated a high probability of their prescribed burn escaping
• arson charges brought by ODOF during the fire, which the prosecutor has recommended be dropped
• site preparations for the burn (permitted for 250 acres) that eventually burned 2870 acres of Shawnee State Forest at great cost and danger to people and property
• the link between federal fire money and ODOF activity, and
• fire impacts on Ohio forests, local economies, and public health.

Annually the Division of Forestry publishes its plans for management of the state forests. These plans include descriptions of logging, prescribed burns, and maintenance projects which will generally occur during 2008. It is imperative that Ohioans review these plans and become involved in the comment process.