Whittni Ananin, Southern Utah University
The gap between public perception of a fuel load and applicable range management is wide. Land managers wish to properly manage invasive species encroachment, but are commonly faced with opposition. Without a proper understanding of a fuel load, rangeland reaches deplorable conditions allowing for unnaturally hot fires to burn. The public currently perceives management techniques such as bull hogging and clear cutting as negative. Similar techniques may be prescribed to restore the ecosystem to a seral stage. In areas such as southern Utah, forests have been permitted to grow older than ever before, leaving these forests incredibly vulnerable to fire. Such devastation has called for swift changes in management practices. Negative connotations predominantly arise from special interest groups without backgrounds in forest management. Our research looks at strategies to bridge the gap between negative perception of forest fires and effective rangeland management. A population diverse poll was conducted to further investigate and educate the gaps within the local community.