Restoration

Native Americans had no word for “bad fire.” What we pejoratively call “wildfire” never happened before Western Civilization ended natural and cultural burning, resulting in excess fuels and diminished fire-dependent habitat. Biochar can be thought of as a byproduct of restoration, created while reducing the excess fuels that result from modern fire suppression.

Once the fuel is sufficiently reduced, fire can return to the landscape much more safely—intentionally or not. Because we can expect fire, we will also have to use fire-resistant construction methods. Prescribed burning can follow manual fuel reduction.

I belong to a prescribed burning association that conducts burn operations in southern Humboldt County in concert with local volunteer fire departments, tribes, and CAL FIRE. Guidance and cooperation from experienced fire professionals and tribal groups is essential for preparing to return healthy fire to a landscape after decades of fire suppression and neglect. Inexperienced volunteers and landowners receive on-the-job training to participate in controlled burns.

Biochar is generally produced in excess of local human needs. Forest soils that were depleted by the timber harvest practices that prevailed until the 1970s can be aided in their recovery by top-dressing with surplus biochar, which gradually assimilates into the soil. It does not need to be ground or inoculated prior to broadcasting on the surface, because this will occur naturally over the time it takes to assimilate.