That is because the forest floor becomes cluttered with litter and thick growths of vegetation. This becomes fuel which feeds the fire. Regular small fires , in addition to controlling debris buildup, also speed up the process of recycling dead plant material into nutrients for the soil. Some plants must have fire in order to reproduce. Many kinds of pines have cones that only fire can pop open, releasing the seeds inside.
Prairie grasses have buds just underground that spring up quickly after a fire.
All this new growth is food for wildlife. In some parts of the United States, however, many people view any fire as bad. They argue that heavy smoke from fires causes air pollution and health problems, and that the danger of a prescribed fire getting out of control and burning homes is too great. One area that is susceptible to wildfires is Yellowstone National Park . The fires of 1988 marched through Yellowstone National Park in June, leaving much of the park in ashes and the debate over man and nature continues.