The Dominion FRIDAY, JANUARY 13, 1939. FIRE AND WATER

Dominion, Volume 32, Issue 93, 13 January 1939, Page 8

The Dominion FRIDAY, JANUARY 13, 1939. FIRE AND WATER

Despite frequent warnings and appeals, human carelessness has been responsible for serious outbreaks of fire in. bush areas this summer. In addition to extensive destruction of timber, farmlands and homesteads have also been threatened. Fire and water between them have .been responsible for incalculable losses during our history. It is not only the immediate and visible destruction of assets., but. the far-reaching after-effects of forest fires and inundations, which gives cause for concern, and should intensify preventive measures. Erosion and landslides follow in the wake of fires, the absorbent power of the land is destroyed, and watercourses become choked with debris. Unable to withstand the strain of carrying off the extra flood waters, rivers overflow their banks, spreading silt and gravel over adjacent lands, destroying their fertility and productivity. In many parts of the world where the balance of nature has been upset by careless disregard for the future, fertile areas have been converted into desert wastes. Today the United States Government is faced with the gigantic problem of fighting the encroachment of the desert upon pastoral and agricultural lands. From various causes forest denudation, unintelligent methods of cultivation, and improvident treatment —a vast area in the State of Kansas has become a sand-infested desert. Clouds of sand from the Kansas “Dust Bowl drift over adjacent States, destroying soil fertility and driving settlers from their homesteads. In 1935 the “Dust Bowl and the adjacent territories covered an area embracing parts of five States. Fire and water are writ large among the problems to be faced by the American people. The same peril, on a smaller scale, threatens this country, A few days ago it was reported that high winds had raised unprecedented dust storms in the Hawke’s Bay area devastated by floods. That visitation, with its attendant destruction, is still fresh in the public mind. It was the worst- disaster of 1938. The silt deposit covered an extensive acreage, and wind erosion is now playing its part, hire prevention in the forest areas and river control to reduce flood risks to a minimum are immediate problems. Much has been accomplished by way of educating the public in the need for care in the disposal of picnic fire embers, cigarette ends and matches in forest country, but effective supervision is also necessary, especially in the State forest conservations, to offset the factor of human carelessness. A good deal also has been done in the way of river control, but much more remains to be accomplished. That is one of the lessons of the Hawke s Bay inundation. Public statements by Ministers indicate that the Government is fully alive to the need for preventive measures against both fire and flood risks. But actions speak louder than words.

But the public has a large measure of responsibility, and should realize that the cause of forest fires is of human origin. The Minister of Internal Affairs, Mr. Parry, remarked in a statement published yesterday that motorists were not free from blame. In the interests of forest protection, he added, “drastic legislation, making it a very serious offence for any person disregarding common sense, by throwing cigarette butts out of cars” might be necessary. He is inclined to assign the major part of responsibility for these fires to this cause rather than to picnic camp fires, which can be more effectively supervised. The point to be stressed is that careless acts of this kind threaten human lives as well as property. Whatever may have been the origin of the forest fires in Australia, there is the tragic fact that than 20 people are known to have perished, and the fate of many more is still uncertain. Vigilant supervision and an active public conscience are needed if our valued forest reserves are to be spared serious and irreparable damage, and farm lands and homesteads safeguarded.