Because of recent concerns over controlled burns in the county, as well as the culling of 66 oaks at Chinsegut, Matthew Koenig, a wildlife biologist at Chinesgut Wildlife and Environmental Area (WEA), presented Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) reasoning behind prescribed burns.
Koenig stated the FWC mission, which is to “manage fish and wildlife resources for their long-term well-being and the benefit of people,” and improve biodiversity in the various environment types. The environment types are determined by vegetation and hydrology, or the water resources of a particular area. Every five years, the natural communities are assessed.
Upland communities, including sandhill communities, were defined as generally “high and dry sites”. Koenig stated that it is believed that natural upland communities that had longleaf pines prior to the 1500s have been largely destroyed, as that is when exploration and settlement of Florida and the Southeastern United States began. Currently, only 0.2% of those longleaf pine forests and 8$ of sandhill communities are “in good enough condition to support the full diversity of native plants and animals”, Koenig said, which means that “these community types are extremely rare and are worth protecting.”
Ecological succession is the way that changes occur in environments and the species (both plant and animal) that inhabit them. In Florida, there are very different ecological environments, from the coastal dunes and mangroves to the denser forests inland. Koenig’s presentation addressed the inland forests and how they change over time. Scrub grasses and weeds, which need little soil nutrition, transition to shrubs, palmettos and pines. This is the stage where sandhill communities fall. The final stage, or climax community, generally has hardwoods such as oaks, hickories, and magnolias.
Based on scientific evidence presented, the FWC’s position is that managing forests is the best way to preserve the sandhill communities. It keeps the forest from overgrowth, allowing specific animals such as the Sherman’s fox squirrel and the Southeastern American kestrel to flourish in that environment. Koenig said that when forests transition to a climax community, some animal species decline or even disappear because of declining food sources as the canopy prevents less light through and the ground is covered in leaf litter.
There are several methods available to either prevent a forest from transitioning to the final stage, or to return it to a previous stage. A natural event, such as lightning, is effective but unpredictable, and manmade communities have interrupted the progress of natural fires due to roads and other barriers. Chemical herbicides, mechanical means such as mowing or cutting, and manipulating the water flow in a forest community are other methods. Adjusting how often these events occur is another way to manipulate the environment.
A prescribed fire in the upland sites is the option that the FWC prefers to use from both an ecological and financial standpoint, especially due to the size of the tracts being managed. Koenig stated there are some benefits to prescribed fires that they cannot duplicate artificially. Additional nutrients enter the soil after a fire, which is beneficial to the animals who eat the plants or seeds. Another benefit which Koenig stated affects the health and mortality rate of animals is the reduction in the number of parasites such as chiggers and ticks. Some plants require the presence of fire to propagate and spread seeds.
However, the benefits are not long-lasting and the ecological changes will continue to occur, so burns must be repeated every two to three years. “If you want to maximize the number of plants and animals on a landscape,” Koenig said, “there is without a doubt no better way to do that than through the use of prescribed fire.”
Shirley Miketinac, who lives near Chinsegut, is opposed to prescribed burning. She stated it is the result of “corporate fiction”, and the reason for keeping only pine forests is to benefit lumber and paper companies. Burning invites invasive plants as the repeated burns damage the pines as well. Miketinac noted that President George W. Bush’s “Healthy Forest Initiative and Flame Act” was based on corporate desires for lumber and pulp for paper, calling it “No Tree Left Behind”.
Commissioner Nick Nicholson stated he appreciated the presentation but found it interesting that for many years species would develop or become extinct based on changes in the environment, yet now some species are favored over others. While he did not speak against the prescribed burns, Nicholson did remark that that was the reason given to continue them.
Koening refuted Miketinac’s belief that FWC is determined to eradicate oaks, and but to reduce them to provide a benefit to a majority of species in the area. He stated that the research she cited was not applicable to this area, but to the Southwest and was used to fit her narrative. Miketinac disputed Koenig’s statement, stating the research from Dr. William L. Baker at the University of Wyoming was recent and there were parallels that applied to the Chinsegut area.
Research can be found to support both sides of the prescribed burn issue. Additional information on prescribed fire can be found at the following websites:
http://myfwc.com/wildlifehabitats/prescribed-fire/
http://www.freshfromflorida.com/Divisions-Offices/Florida-Forest-Service/Wildland-Fire/Prescribed-Fire
http://fireinflorida.ifas.ufl.edu/prescribed%20burning.html
http://www.fireparadox.org/prescribed_fire.php