42 COMMISSION OF CONSERVATION 



Minnesota, where conditions are similar to those over a large area of 

 forest country in Ontario and Southeastern Manitoba. In the same 

 way, forest conditions in Alberta and British Columbia are closely 

 similar to those in Montana, Idaho, Washington and Oregon, where the 

 problem of brush disposal has been the subject of a great deal of investi- 

 gation and discussion. For these reasons, conditions in the regions 

 named are discussed in some detail later in this report. 



Brush Disposal Necessary 



While patrols, the use of spark arresters, care with camp-fires, 

 and similar measures are, and will continue to be, necessary, the root 

 of the problem so far as the slashing menace is concerned, can best 

 be reached through the adoption of measures for the disposal of debris 

 from woods operations, in sections where the fire danger is extreme. 

 It must be recognized that conditions vary widely, and that measures 

 to be taken must be justified by the intensity of the fire danger, and 

 must also be practicable from a business point of view. 



In the past, when stumpage values were low, and the margin of 

 profit small, owing to large supplies and keen competition for the market, 

 intensive methods could not be practised. Now, however, timber 

 values are becoming sufiiciently high to justify the owner in spending 

 money to protect his remaining timber from fire, and, to a certain ex- 

 tent, in protecting the young growth for the sake of later cuttings. 

 This is particularly true in the pulpwood sections, where repeated 

 operations are practicable within reasonable limits of time. This 

 consideration, however, should appeal with especial force to the Pro- 

 vincial and Dominion Governments in Canada, which, fortunately, 

 still retain to a very large extent the ownership of immense areas 

 of non-agricultural lands which are sviitable only for the production of 

 timber. Governments can best afford to hold lands for forest produc- 

 tion, on account of the long time element inv®lved, and thus are par- 

 ticularly interested in maintaining the forest productive capacity of 

 their non-agricultural lands. The question of fire-protection and thus 

 of brush disposal should appeal to Government agencies with especial 

 force. 



No Hardship upon Operators. — The imposition of conditions under 

 which cutting will be permitted upon Government lands is in reality no 

 hardship upon operators, since these conditions are taken into con- 

 sideration in fbdng the prices to be paid for the privilege of cutting. 

 This is self-evident as to the issuance of new licenses, where the operator 

 knows the conditions in advance and makes his tender upon that basis, 

 thus throwing upon the Government, where it belongs, the cost of pro- 

 viding for the perpetuation of the forest. In case of renewals of licenses 



