It's just a little valley on a tropical island, sitting
just on top of the equator in the west Pacific Ocean. It's
on weathered volcanic soil with a steep little mountain
range on one side and the main highway on the other passing
high above it. I live along the southern rim of that
valley and I've known it my whole life.
Hiking at a nice leisurely pace up the steep ravine hills
for a few hundred feet is entirely worth it when I choose a
spot near the summit to just be. It's a true blessing to
be able to do that. It's a wonderful workout, too. The
tops of the steep hills all the way down to nearly its base
are covered with savanna grasslands. The really steep
slopes and all along their base are covered with ravine
forests. More like raving jungles. If you look up into
those hills from a distance, the golden color of the
grasslands are a fantastic contrast to the dark green
jungles of the foothills. It staggers my mind to know that
a hundred years ago, nearly all of these hills were dark
green. Jungles all the way to the top. Wow. And what a
reason why it's no longer that way.
Fire has been used as a tool for man's purposes practically
from the moment of its discovery. So too has it been done
here. And it has become one of the greatest weapons for
deer hunting here in the southern jungles. What they do is
set a fire. Just set a fire to blaze and let her rip.
Help it if it's having some trouble getting going. Because
once it's gone and burning acres along the land, a
fantastic thing called life happens after. New grass
shoots come out of the burned and blackened hills. And the
deer will come to eat those tender shoots with the fierce
hunter in waiting.
Oh, but all the other things that happen because a fire was
set loose in the hills. Surely, not things the arsonist
would have thought about. Let's just move in the direction
as things happen. The fire is set and it's burning. First
thing then is the atmosphere. A powerful green house gas
(carbon dioxide), a direct byproduct of burning vegetation,
is set forth into the atmosphere. But wait. We won't
actually feel its effects for a long time anyway. No,
that's not right. Global warming. That's right. Isn't it
amazing that the collective burning of vegetation all over
the world is still a major contributor to global warming?
Strike one.
While it's burning, a stray fire will often run into a
jungle. So the fire will stop then, right? That's true.
It will—at an eventual time. But the fire won't just
stop once it meets the jungle. It's got to burn its way
into it a bit, to run into the water and the bulk of the
jungle. That'll take a few feet at least. So fires reduce
the size of jungles if allowed to burn out on their own.
The more you burn, the smaller your jungles. Strike two.
Now the fire has died and the hills are bare. When the
rain comes, and they will, so much soil will wash away.
I've never seen a burnt hillside escape from being washed
down by the rains. Soil erosion to sedimentation in the
water. But that doesn't matter. The ocean is a big place.
It won't hurt. In the grand scheme of oceans, not too
much. To the aquatic creatures in the rivers, the living
coral reefs, and the enormous marine population that feed
and live on those reefs, the damage is absolutely
life-threatening. Strike three.
Let's add it all up. We've got the pros on one side, that
being that the new shoot growth immediately following a
fire is enticing to deer. They could be easier to catch.
It only benefits the hunter. We've got the cons on the
other side and the list is awesome.
▪ The air, our atmosphere, receives an infusion of a
powerful greenhouse gas that contributes to global warming.
We know, without doubt, that extensive and continuing
global warming has caused, and is accelerating, a climate
change that could very well end our days.
▪ There is the land. Our jungles do get smaller.
This already results in loss of habitat for wildlife. The
vibrant green of our jungles and the golden sea of our
savannas are replaced by burnt and blackened hills. Any
wildlife, nests or burrows caught in the fire, any food
supply, well, that's just their loss. And when the rains
come, we lose our topsoil. No more roots to hold it in
place. Accelerated soil erosion, I do despise it. .
▪ There is the sea, to include the rivers.
Immediately following soil erosion is the impact of
sedimentation. This transported soil spreads. It blankets
and suffocates when at last it settles. Sedimentation is
the bringer of death to microscopic organisms, to
vegetation, to fish and corals, to say the least. In
aquatic environments, destruction is great and
long-lasting. Imagine that your air is filled with ash all
of the time. What would the quality of your life be like
then?
The action of man introduces hundreds of millions of tons
of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere every single day.
There is no question, no debate. A good percentage of that
comes from the constant burning of the natural landscape.
We have to change how we do things.
For the survival of our race, global warming has to stop.
The ongoing climate change must be arrested, if not
reversed. If we refuse to make it happen, will anything
matter in fifty or a hundred years? Spread the word. Take
your part. We can still save ourselves.
----------------------------------------------------
Len Q. is a master blade sharpener and an adventurer who
strives to protect the natural world. If you would like to
find out about
▪ Knife Sharpening: How to Sharpen Knives, Maintain
and Store Them
▪ Sharpening Other Edges
(e.g. Lawn Mower Blades, Chain Saws, Gardening Tools, Axes)
Find it here at http://www.MakeKnivesSharp.com .
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