Browning chief. [volume] (Browning, Mont.) 1941-1953, 1944-06-23
Forest Fires Sabotage War Plans by Destroying
Lumber, Fastening Erosion, Diverting Manpower

mit-and the law-before burning
grass, brush, fence rows, ferns,
trash, or before starting any fires
in forests.
3. For everybody to put out small
fires and to report all others quickly
to the nearest ranger or fire warden.
Geographical Aspects.
With an eye to the tremendous
value of timber in our about war
production activities, the United
States has been divided into three
broad zones, each of which has been
weighed and it's relative importance
Indicated on the map-which also
shows the Forest Service admins
trative regions. Before the broad
zones and administrative regions
were determined, war industrial &C.
lVlty and national defense consid-
eratlons were studiously reviewed.
Zone l, with relative importance
of GO, includes:
l.. Three Pacific coast states plus
western Montana and northwestern
Idaho.
2. Most of the three Great Lakes
states.
3. AL or parts of &c states from
Missouri, Arkansas, east Texas and
Louisiana to Maine.
Zone ii, with a relative impor-
lance of 30, includes:
l.. The area lying east of the Pa
clfic coast portion of Zone and west
OF the Great Plains states.
2. The area lying between the
Lakes states and the Atlantic coast
Gulf of Mexico portion of Zone 1.
Zone III, with relative impor-
lance of 10, includes parts of Mon
tana and Minnesota, and all or parts
of the Great Plains states of North
and South Dakota, Nebraska, Iowa,
Missouri, Kansas, Texas and Okla
homa.
These zones have been subdivid-
ed into regions as follows, with the
particular fire hazards briefly listed:
Region 1: montana and Northern
ldaho): Ninety per cent of all fires
here are caused by lightning, with
the greatest damage done to white
pine timber. The resident problem
is more important than the visitor
problem.
Region 2: Colorado, Wyoming,
South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas:
thirty four per cent of all fires in
this region are man-cauSed. The Wis
ltor problem is more important than
the resident one, with carelessness
more of factor than intentional fire
setting.
Region 3: (Arizona, New Mexico):
There is less of a fire problem here
than in any other region.
Region 4: utah, Nevada, most
OF ldaho): In this region man-caused
fires run from II to 81 per cent,
varying with the locality. Careless
smokers, logging operators, camp
ers, land clearing farmers and
ranchers, are the causes. Serious
erosion is often caused by fires in
many localities. Grass fires are a
great hazard.
Region 5: California;: Three
fourths of all fires are man-caused.
Part of this is due to the great influx
of war workers, but the majority of
fires are caused by residents rather
than newcomers.
Region 6: Oregon, Washington
Most forest fires here are due to
careless smokers, but forest indus
tries and incendaries cause the larg-
est area burned and the greatest
damage.
> Region 7: (New England and Mid.
die Atlantic states plus Maryland,
West Virginia and Virginia.: Again
the local resident and the smoker
are mainly to blame-also the farm
er who burns to clear land.
Region 8: CThe South, from North
Carolina south and west to and in
Guiding Texas): The intentional
burner-who has believed in burning
for years-is the greatest problem.
He is the local resident, not the
vistor-the white man rather than
the Negro.
Region 9: (the Great Lakes states,
North Dakota, Iowa, Missouri, Hi
nois, Indiana, Ohio): Diverse condi-
tons exist in this region with large
numbers of fires and tremendous
acreage burned. Ninety-seven per
cent of all fires are man-caused in
the following order of Importance
the smoker, the incendiary, the de-
bris burner.