Dale Matson
“No arrests have been
made, and the hunter's name is being withheld "pending further
investigation," Forest Service spokesman Ray Mooney said. Investigators
declined to release further details Thursday, including where he's from,
whether they have interviewed him and whether there were other hunters
involved.” http://www.mercurynews.com/science/ci_24023173/rim-fire-blaze-was-started-by-hunter-an
(Paul
Rodgers, San Jose Mercury News 09-05-13
It surprised me that there was no
immediate claim about the cause of the fire by the U.S. Forest Service when the
fire began in mid-August in the Stanislaus National Forest. My wife and I were
returning from the east side of the Sierras via highway 120 over Tioga Pass on
August 23rd when we saw the enormous smoke plume as early as the eastern gate of Yosemite. At that time 120 westbound
was still open and the fire had not entered Yosemite Park.
It was
initially reported that the cause of the Rim Fire was ‘unknown’. Then it was
reported that the Rim Fire was caused by illegal marijuana growers. This reason
was then denied because the area was too steep and there was no water source to
grow the plants. Since that time the fire has been attributed to the illegal
campfire of a ‘hunter’. It almost seems to me that government officials are
reaching for a plausible cause that will also offer up a politically correct
explanation and appeal to those opposed to guns. What follows is a quote from
one of those who responded to the article in the San Jose Mercury News article
written by Paul Rodgers. [Slightly edited]
“Hey,
this response is to you, Paul Rogers, the author who wrote this article. Did you
conduct any investigative journalism to validate/verify that this fire was
started by a hunter? Have any of you in the media asked what an alleged hunter was
doing in Zone D6 when hunting season isn't even open until Sept 21st? (Check the
DFG regulations which are open for public viewing) I'd like to see the media
produce some evidence...but no, they are just interested in narratives and
story lines.
Could
this be our failed government and the stupid media once again partnering to
blame a terrible tragedy on gun owners? This is an endless effort to distort
the truth and perpetuate myths in their mutual war on gun owners and gun
ownership? If this alleged hunter was in Zone D6, "hunting", then
he/she was there illegally and will get prosecuted for that. If an individual
did start this fire, then I think they were at best a hiker or a stupid
"poacher" and clearly not a law abiding hunter.” (Drew
McLaughlin)
At this
point, it remains a mystery to me that the individual(s) that started this fire
has/have not been identified. Additionally, IF it was an illegal hunter hunting out of season, then
the individual should be referred to as a poacher and not a ‘hunter’ and
prosecuted accordingly.
In any
event, I hope that the U.S. Forest Service will review their policy on the management
of our national forests and not just pass fires like this off as caused by
climate change and bad prior fire management practices. Privately managed
forests have been demonstrated to be less fire prone because they are thinned
and harvested. There is a Montana State University white paper on this that I
no longer have access to.
Do we need to
even rethink the concept of designating an area as “wilderness”? Fire policy in our National Parks where a U.S. Forest Service official told me
confidentially that a “let burn” policy contributed to fires getting out of
control in Yellowstone in 1988, burning over 800,000 acres.
Here is the white paper by Holly Fretwell a researcher for Property and Environment Research Center (PERC) Bozeman. http://perc.org/articles/do-we-get-what-we-pay
ReplyDeletehere is a good update from the Modesto Bee.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.modbee.com/2013/09/28/2947706/rim-fire-renews-debate-over-sierra.html
Today's Fresno Bee indicated that Keith Matthew Emerald appeared in Federal Court in Fresno and pleaded not guilty to setting the Rim Fire.
ReplyDelete