A NATIONAL PLAN FOR AMERICAN FORESTRY 429 



hot, dry summers favor intense and widespread burns which leave watershed 

 surfaces bare and ash-covered, exposed to the full effects of the wash of torrential 

 fall and winter rains. 



During the 3-year period 1928-30, inclusive, 7,957 forest and brush 

 fires occurred in California and burned 2,193,114 acres, the com- 

 mittee states, adding " Unfortunately these fires are, in the main, 

 set by owners of land and local residents * * *." Another 

 serious source of fires has been carelessness on the part of some of 

 the recreationists who visit California's forests by the millions every 

 year. 



While most of the fires occur on foothill woodland and brush 

 areas, large areas of virgin forest and of cut-over land are still burned 

 every year. Fire protection is improving both on Federal lands and 

 on private lands protected by the State. Climatic difficulties, 

 however, require intensification of suppression activities by the 

 Federal Government on the national forests, national parks, and 

 Indian reservations and by the State on State and private lands. 

 The State division of forestry is charged with the duty of protecting 

 private lands from fire. As stated by the honorary watershed 

 committee : 



meager funds and, frequently, lukewarm public support, it has 

 attempted to meet its obligations through educational means, endeavoring to 

 create popular sentiment for the prevention and control of fires. By slow stages, 

 it is developing a machinery for fire protection covering the territory outside the 

 national forests. It must be noted that the owners of forest and woodlands 

 under State protection often are interested in other than the water crop of which 

 they themselves are not the direct beneficiaries. Under these conditions, fre- 

 quently the type of occupancy and use seriously impair the watershed values. 

 This conflict in use and values must be weighed and judged in the light of the 

 relative need for timber, forage, recreation, and water crop. Under sound 

 forest management, such conflicts will be avoided and all of the inherent values of 

 forest lands safely and wisely utilized. Larger State expenditures will be needed 

 in order to carry out an adequate protection program. 



Excessive use of range feed once was common over a large part of 

 California's forested areas. Grazing has been practically eliminated 

 from the steep brush-covered slopes within the national forests of the 

 south and central coastal basins. Efforts have been made, also, to 

 adjust grazing to the quantity of feed available on all national forest 

 lands within the California drainages that are still open to grazing. 

 With long dry summers, however, restoration of depleted cover has 

 been slow. On private forest lands, particularly in the foothills, 

 heavy grazing use and the common practice of burning with a view to 

 opening up brushy areas or improving the forage have seriously 

 impaired the watershed values of extensive areas. 



In the past destructive logging and the broadcast burning accom- 

 panying it were a menace to watershed values. Broadcast burning 

 following logging has been practically abandoned, and logging 

 practices have been made less destructive by substituting tractor 

 logging for high-lead skidding with heavy machinery. As a result 

 timber stands are being left in better condition for protection of 

 watershed values. 



The national forests of the California drainages contain 13 million 

 acres of forest land, approximately one third of the total forest area 

 in these drainages. Watershed protection has been given careful 

 attention in national-forest administration. In the management 

 of timber and range numerous curtailments of use have been made 



