Ruffner said he was impressed by the quality of the timber he saw at the site. Yet, I'm a practical forester, too, and society needs a lot of paper, lumber and fiber. But we also need to identify those areas that could serve as resources for something like recreation while being actively managed for timber. Carver, who has a doctorate in agronomy as well as a master's in forestry, said he'd like to see marginal agricultural land developed as timberland, something that could help farmers who badly need another source of income. Active management does not mean cutting down every tree in sight, the foresters said, just as preservation does not mean leaving everything untouched.
Management is more like trying to mimic what comes naturally.
When you take fire out of the system, you no longer have what you tried to preserve.