Another new study published by the Ecological Society of America titled “Does wildfire likelihood increase following insect outbreaks in conifer forests?”  by Garrent Meigs and coauthors concludes that bark beetles outbreaks do not lead to greater likelihood of fires. This research joins a growing list of studies, all using different methods of evaluation that finds that bark beetles are not a driving force in wildfire. Rather climate, terrain, and other factors are more important.

Yet the Forest Service continues to promote the idea that logging beetle kill trees will reduce future fires in direct conflict to contradictory research.  More at: www.thewildlifenews.com

GR:  Another example of how the U. S. Forest Service works to increase corporate profits even when it harms the forests.  Oh, by the way, the U. S. Forest Service is funded by the American tax-paying public.  How many of those taxpayers benefit from Weyerhaeuser and other logger profits?