Canadian Forcstrij Journal, Julij, 1917 



1207 



Since that time an intensive fire 

 patrol has reduced the k)ss i)y nine- 

 tenths. Sufficient money has been 

 saved from this source alone to pay 

 all expenses of the entire State govern- 

 ment. 



Prior to this time there was no 

 organized effort to control forest fires, 

 each property owner endeavoring to 



keep fires from burning his own fences 

 and improvements and allowing it to 

 consume all of the forests without 

 hindrance. It was the general lule 

 to set fire to the forests, it being cov- 

 tended that the burning improved 

 the ground and made better range 

 for the cattle. 



What Alberta Owes to Forests 



{Reprinted from the Lethbridgc Herald) 



"Southern Alberta is as closely 

 linked up with forest conservation as 

 the most heavily wooded- part of 

 Canada. Irrigation derives its life 

 from watershed forest protection. 

 Coal mining faces one of its chief 

 problems in a supply of wooden pit 

 props. The fertility of the farm lands 

 owes much to the forest's contribu- 

 tion of moisture to the air currents. 

 The cattle and wheat raiser are ex- 

 tensive users of lumber, and the cost 

 of these wood supplies is an item of 

 high importance. Though we may 

 live far. from the edge of growing 

 timber, it is upon us, as users, that 

 the penalties of forest waste are 

 bound to fall." 



This statement was made this 

 morning by Robson Black, secretary 

 of the Canadian Forestry Association 

 of Ottawa, who spent the day in 

 Lethbridge, discussing conservation 

 questions with many leading citizens, 

 including President Marnock of the 

 Board of Trade 



Mr. Black praised the progressive 

 stand taken by the board in declar- 

 ing for the riddance of the patronage 

 evil in pubhc administration, and 

 mentioned the mischievious results in 

 forest protection systems operated 

 on the patronage basis. 



"Alberta is now the only province 

 in Canada that has not taken provin- 

 cial action in the thorough elimina- 

 tion of forest fires. The greatest 

 hazard to the maintenance of the irri- 

 gation projects of Southern Alberta 

 is the freedom enfoyed by settlers in 

 or near the forest, burning their 



'slash' without taking reasonable pre- 

 cautions. 



These settlers' "clearing fires"must 

 be stopped at once unless the tree 

 cover on the watersheds is dam- 

 aged irreparably. The only author- 

 ity that can act in the matter is the 

 provincial legislature which was ask- 

 ed to pass an act establishing what is 

 called "the permit system" whereby 

 every settler's fire in or near forest 

 country shall be supervised by local 

 fire guardians or Dominion forest 

 rangers. This means practically no 

 expense to the province and is im- 

 peratively necessary. Saskatchewan 

 and Manitoba adopted the law with- 

 out controversy. It is likely Alberta 

 will pass an act next session. 



"The water supply of the Alberta 

 plains takes its source in the eastern 

 slopes of the Rockies. On account 

 of free-running fires in times past 

 more than 90 per cent, of the trees 

 are less than 100 years old and 75 

 per cent, are not 50 years old. As a 

 consec{uence, the rivers originating 

 in this great protective and regulating 

 area are all subject to gross fluctua- 

 tion, thereby reducing their value for 

 irrigation purposes. 



Demands of Coal Mines 



"The coal mines of Alberta use six 

 lineal feet of wood for every ton of 

 coal taken from the earth. The farm- 

 er on our plains is the greatest wood 

 user on earth, using nine times as 

 much per capita as the European far- 

 mer. Wherever we turn we see the 

 absolutely essential character of for- 

 est maintenance. 



