Editorial: Fires spark misguided allegations

Wednesday, Aug. 16, 2000 | 9:44 a.m.

It's a shame that some elected officials are playing politics with the devastating fires that this year have swept through 13 Western states, including here in Nevada. Montana Gov. Marc Racicot, a Republican, suggests the Clinton administration didn't prepare adequately for the fires. Racicot also argues that environmental opposition to more logging, which in theory would reduce the amount of trees that could set off a huge fire, has been a contributor to the worst fire season in three decades. "I don't think it's a conspiracy, but it's a philosophy they have that leads to explosive fires that destroy everything," Racicot told the New York Times last week. What rubbish.

For starters, many of these disastrous fires have been started by lightning strikes -- a force of nature that man can't control. And no matter how much manpower there is, if the climate is such that the forests become virtual powder kegs, it can be impossible to contain the fires. Short of felling every tree in sight, fires are inevitable. The administration bashing is occurring, in part, because it's an election year. The attacks also echo charges by the GOP-friendly timber industry, which wants more logging in national forest lands, no matter what harm this might cause the environment.

As long as there are forests -- and the West becomes more populated -- the potential will increase for fires that both can kill residents and destroy huge expanses of forests, desert brush and undergrowth. But those facts probably won't stop the attacks by Racicot, who has tried to turn Mother Nature into a partisan issue. Don't be surprised, then, if Racicot starts blaming Democrats for tornados in the Midwest and hurricanes in the South.