info about clear-cutting?

Question

"Until observing the effectiveness of a clear cut strip in stopping a forest fire, I would have agreed that clear cut forest areas are bad, and still do, if the clear cut is a whole mountainside. However, one-fourth to one-half mile wide clear-cut bands, are beneficial to the forest and to wildlife. These clear-cut bands are the single most effective means of stopping a forest fire. Within a year after being clear cut, these clear cut areas have newly planted trees, grasses, abundant flowers, and are full of game signs. For several years after a ground-sterilizing forest fire there is nothing but black ground. Proper forest management, which includes letting some fires burn, prescribed burns, and areas of strip clear cuts, increases the habitat for all types of wildlife, whereas hot burning forest fires sterilizes the soil and nothing grows, or lives there, for many years."

I found this on a website, makes sense.
your thoughts.

Answer 1

The article is backward, and a forest fire area,even a huge crown fire, does not leave the ground sterile for years, the soil is full of nutrients left in the ashes. Where clear cutting is bad, is the total removal of biomass, where as with fires the biomass is still there.
Now the problem with a crown fire (usually a very rare type but in abundance because of poor forest management) is, there is nothing left to hold the soil in place, clear cuts are just as bad in this respect.

Answer 2

It makes sense. I had only heard of clear cutting by forest industry to obtain wood products, and the it was left without replanting. I have seen this. My father was a fireman and I know about doing a backburn to stop fires. Where we are now they do alot of prescribed burns. I would support clear cut burning, providing replanting was required. Of course the burning could be done during weather that was appropriate for control .The question that comes up is,who does the burning and whose property is it that gets burned.?

Answer 3

a clear cut strip may be great for fires that happen once a year if that often. but how does your clear cut strips address the erosion problems it causes?