Aluminum cans, shoes . . . and dangerous, fire-feeding brush. Forest rangers across the nation are now using flocks of goats to clear thick brush in fire-prone areas of forest. While uncontrolled grazing by any animal especially goats can wreak havoc on the environment, targeted grazing can rid forests of low branches and brush that might otherwise fuel a fire. During a blaze, brush only three feet high can create a 15-foot firewall that sweeps through the forest at 15 miles per hour. Just a few days of controlled grazing can defoliate miles of dangerously high brush, thereby reducing the risk of a disastrous wildfire.
Goats also protect native flora and fauna by munching exotic weeds.
Rather than spraying dangerous herbicides, rangers in Northern California send these hungry ungulates to remove unwanted plants from parks and land where the plants threaten native species. Even sheep are getting into the act. A recent study found that plants can get sunburned. In humans, sunlight causes genetic damage to skin cells and can lead to tumor growth and skin cancer. Plants show the same kind of genetic damage, but do not develop tumors.