FEMA Plans Clear-Cutting 85,000 Berkeley and Oakland Trees

[SheilaT]

27. I don't know anything about this particular situation, but I do know

that fire is an enormous hazard in lots of places, especially where there are severe or extreme drought conditions.

All too often people plant trees and bushes right up next to their houses, want to live on narrow, winding lanes that firetrucks can't maneuver down very easily, and then wonder why whole neighborhoods burn.

I'm in Santa Fe, NM. This entire state is in drought, with about three-quarters considered to be in extreme or exceptional drought conditions. There's a little tiny piece in the southeastern corner that is merely abnormally dry. They've already banned campfires and smoking outside unless standing within an area well-cleared of any debris or flammable material. I don't think they've yet called off the official 4th of July fireworks, but it may well happen. Unfortunately, there's no legal ability to ban the kind of fireworks people buy, so look forward to lots of fires in this state in a month or two.

There have been articles in the local newspaper about the parts of town that are very susceptible to fires, mainly on the north and east of the city where there's actual forest.