pondo1.jpgIn response to an announcement by the US Forest Service in mid January, regional and national media have been reporting of a potentially catastrophic scenario that may play out in Colorado forests over the next three to five years. It is said that in that time, the current mountain pine beetle epidemic, which began in 1996, may wipe out all lodgepole pine trees in the northern and front range forests of the state. Of the six Colorado counties most effected by this situation, Chaffee and Lake are two.

KWGN News out of Denver reports:

“Besides being an eyesore, the pine beetle epidemic raises some serious concerns about the risk of catastrophic wildfires and damage to the watershed. Forestry experts say this epidemic is unprecedented in recorded history.”

Why did this happen in the first place and what should or should not be done about it? A recent commentary posted on the the Western Institute for Study of the Environment states,

“Here’s the only thing that can be done now: strip the dead trees off the landscape and sell them for whatever we can get for them. Then burn it. Then burn it again. Then burn it again. The goal should be to eliminate the lodgepole pine (and Gambel oak) and induce native grasses, forbs, bulbs, and other prairie plants. Keep the burning going, year after year, in the fall when conditions are right. Eventually an open, park-like forest of ponderosa pines (with a few lodgepoles and spruces) will arise.”

Still, others see the beetle infestation as part of a natural cycle that will eventually result in healthier, more diverse forests. A story by AP writer, Ivan Moreno, quotes entomologist with the Colorado State Forest Service, Ingrid Aguayo as saying:

“A lot of people think this is the end of the forest, but as an entomologist, I see it as the beginning,” she said, pointing out seedlings about five inches tall are already sprouting in parts where the beetles have run their course.

Other people take a different approach to instead answer how communities might be able to creatively rise to the occasion. As David Accomazzo of The Longmont Times writes,

“Despite Colorado’s abundance of beetle-kill trees available for small-diameter use, businesses spend millions each year importing wood products from outside the state.”

This coming Wednesday, April 16th, Colorado State Forest Service and the USDA Forest Service will host an evening meeting to update Chaffee County residents about local forest health issues. The meeting will be held in Poncha Springs at the Chaffee County Fair Grounds from 6:30 to 8:30 pm.

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