A NATIONAL PLAN FOE AMERICAN FOEESIEY 



813 



TABLE 6. Regional results of protection as shown by the ratio of the "allowable 

 burn" to the area burned over annually 



1 Data not available. 



Measured by this yardstick, the North Rocky Mountain region 

 makes the best showing, New England comes a long distance below, 

 and the other regions take their places still farther down. 



Conditions necessary for efficiency. Various reasons may account 

 for an unsatisfactory situation, where one exists personnel, type of 

 organization, political interference, lack of suitable legislation, in- 

 ability to obtain law enforcement, lack of money, newness of the 

 work, and so on. The most important single requirement for success, 

 of course, is suitable financial support. 



Most States have not as yet provided adequate financing of the 

 job. The total estimated cost of adequate protection as worked out 

 in 1930 for each State by the individual State forestry departments 

 in cooperation with the Forest Service was $13,386,000; while cal- 

 culated by regions on the basis of the standards set up in the section 

 of this report entitled, Protection Against Fire, the total estimated 

 cost of adequate protection is placed at approximately $20,000,000. 

 The State budgets for 1933 provide a total of $6,142,500; this includes 

 all State, Federal, and private funds that will be available for expen- 

 diture under State supervision. While these budgeted expenditures 

 will be considerably augmented by independent private protection 

 work, the gap left will still be of very formidable dimensions. 



Of equal importance is stability of funds. To have an effective 

 organization there must be a substantial measure of permanency 

 in the field force, so as to build up and utilize experience. Wide 

 fluctuations in the financial provisions for the work disrupt its con- 

 tinuity. ^ Where dependence must be placed principally or largely 

 upon private cooperative funds, or game and fish license receipts, 

 or taxes upon timber or timber products, the revenue is likely to 

 fluctuate, making the organization unstable. Several of the Southern 

 States derive most of their financial support other than the Federal 

 contribution from the voluntary cooperation of private owners, 

 which in times of depression falls off materially. In a few of the far 

 Western States, where private participation in the expense of pro- 

 tection is required by law, participation can be avoided by allowing 

 the lands to revert for taxes. There is no assurance of continuous 

 protection of the lands after they have been logged and the valuable 

 merchantable material removed. Their owners may feel it economi- 



