Cross-Boundary Issues to Manage for Healthy Forest Ecosystems

Abstract

Since the mid-1980s, the frequency of severe and extensive wildfires, involving millions of hectares, has increased. Beginning with the 1988 fires and the concern about Yellowstone National Park through the 1994 season, in which 34 lives were lost and 1.9 billion ha burned, the extremes in fire activity have become the norm. Then, in 1996, the fires began in the southern United States much earlier then normal and raged unceasingly in the west well into September, covering over 2.5 million ha and costing well over $1 billion. All this activity has made one issue very clear — fires do not respect property lines or political boundaries. These events have brought the issue of forest ecosystem health into a central position in the debate on the use and management of natural resources and the many values society places on these resources. And by the very nature of the issue, the concept of the landscape as organizational unit has gained recognition from the public, the media, and the policy makers.