Forest fire: friend or foe?

For most people, forest fires mean destruction. What is often not realized is that fire is a natural step in producing good forest ecosystem health. When fire is excluded from the natural system, a forest's plant density and species composition changes. Thus, to achieve forest management objectives, prescribed burning, or the controlled use of fire is being practiced largely in the United States. The prescribed fire, combined with other management techniques, can restore wildland forests to more sustainable areas and reduce the potential for catastrophic wildfires.