Firewise USA

The very night before Ron Nick’s house caught fire, the Landscape & Sustainability Committee met to hear about our forest. Oklahoma State Forester Evan Long, who is the forester for our part of the state, has started to look at our forest and had some thoughts. “It’s basically healthy…about what I’d expect,” he said. When we called to ask why the forest didn’t catch fire, Long said, “On the surface, I would assume that the relative humidity within the forest was higher than in the house or lawn. I assume this as forests tend to retain their moisture due to canopy cover, along with the fact that all of the living plant matter is actively transpiring in the area. The timing of the fire also could be a factor too, as towards the night the relative humidity increases as a whole, so this effect may be especially pronounced within the forest.”

Something to think about: Every day, a 40-foot tree takes in 50 gallons of dissolved nutrients from the soil, raises this mixture to its topmost leaves, converts it to 10 pounds of carbohydrates, and releases about 60 cubic feet of pure oxygen into the air.

Once again, it seems we have a Gilcrease Hills committee on top of things—the Landscaping & Sustainability committee. By planning how to actively maintain our forest, we’re reducing the risk of wildfire and possibly saving everyone some money on their house insurance. That’s another step—to get certified by Firewise USA as a site in good standing. And we’re just in time for Fire Prevention Week October 8-14. Here’s some tip sheets and games to help learn about fire safety.