csmonitor--2020-10-08--Crisp air and apples: Pandemic-weary folks flock to pick-your-own farms

“ It ’ s nice to hear other people talking and having that conversation that a lot of people were lacking in the first three months [ of the pandemic ] , ” Ms. Smith says .
“ I ’ m just going to enjoy the day , make some caramel apples.
” Farmers , resilient to seasonal shifts , are well-equipped to handle crowds of eager visitors and are making the best of a tricky season .
“ Even in a normal year , family outings to pick apples is a time-honored tradition , ” says Jim Bair , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
“ And this year , I think people are tired of looking at the same four walls.
” Elizabeth Kotoulis and Rachel Smith are wandering among the fruit trees at Brooksby Farm , enjoying a reprieve from Boston , where they both live .
To enter the orchard and pick your own apples , you have to get in long lines , and everyone gets a squirt of hand sanitizer or uses the hand-washing station .
Masks are required .
It ’ s autumn in the heart of New England – and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ business is booming .
Michelle Melanson only has a minute to talk .
It ’ s Saturday , the sun is warm , and the leaves are just showing their fall colors – a recipe for a packed day at Brooksby Farm in Peabody .
“ It has been an extremely busy season , ” says Ms. Melanson , the farm ’ s store manager , her voice rising on the phone over the din of customers .
Today , the lines for pick-your-own apples and pumpkins are particularly long .
And particularly @ @ @ @ @ @ @ hand sanitizer or uses the makeshift hand-washing station .
Masks stay on inside and in line , though some visitors pull them off in the orchard , despite “ masks are required ” signs .
It ’ s autumn in the heart of New England – and the time of the coronavirus – and business is booming .
With Halloween around the corner and other businesses struggling through an economic downturn , orchards are hustling through peak season .
Pick-your-own apples and pumpkins , with all the trimmings – cider donuts , hayrides @ @ @ @ @ @ @ draw for cooped-up families looking for safe outdoor activities .
And farmers , resilient to seasonal shifts , are well-equipped to handle crowds of eager visitors .
“ It ’ s been a fabulous year in terms of turnout , ” says Ben Clark , owner of Clarkdale Fruit Farms in Deerfield .
“ People really want to be outside doing something with the family that ’ s safe and socially distanced .
... People are really looking for some normalcy.
” Mr. Clark is also president of the Massachusetts Fruit Growers Association @ @ @ @ @ @ @ prepared just like we ’ d be prepared for a storm , ” he says .
New England is fertile ground for smaller orchards that offer agritourism activities , a different breed from the huge commercial fruit operations mostly found in Washington state .
But even outside New England , small orchards are seeing an uptick in business .
“ We ’ re absolutely hearing that from around the country , ” says Jim Bair , president of USApple , an industry organization .
“ Even in a normal year , family outings @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
And this year , I think people are tired of looking at the same four walls , ” he says .
At Brooksby Farm , Elizabeth Kotoulis and Rachel Smith wander among the apple trees , enjoying a reprieve from Boston , where they both live .
“ I think it ’ s such a strange time , that I still feel guilty doing these kinds of things , ” says Ms. Smith .
“ But you also kind of have to , for your mental health.
” “ This is like @ @ @ @ @ @ @ right now , ” Ms. Kotoulis says .
The nearest group of visitors inspects a tree several yards away .
“ It ’ s nice to hear other people talking and having that conversation that a lot of people were lacking in the first three months [ of the pandemic ] , ” Ms. Smith agrees .
“ I ’ m just going to enjoy the day , make some caramel apples.
” The pair ’ s stroll was well-orchestrated by the farm , with all the usual sanitization protocols and only a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ orchard at one time .
Some farms , like Tangerini ’ s Spring Street Farm in Millis , Massachusetts , are asking visitors to reserve a day and time for hay-bale rides or apple picking to control crowds .
They ’ ve also made their produce available for curbside pickup and home delivery .
“ Thank goodness for our laminator , ” says Linda Chiarizio , who owns Tangerini ’ s with her husband , Steve , and has put up a lot of signs in the last few months instructing visitors how @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Near The Farmer ’ s Porch , their restaurant , where people dine in the open air , the Chiarizios have parked an old flatbed army truck – a makeshift stage for live music at a distance .
Some Halloween festivals are nixed , however .
Connors Farm in Danvers , Massachusetts , is skipping Hysteria , its haunted farm and flashlight maze event .
And large events in general , like weddings and birthday parties , are off the table .
But farmers have made the best of a tricky season .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ says Mr. Clark .
“ Farmers by nature are resilient because we have to be , ” he says .
“ Many farms ... have survived for generations because they ’ ve adapted to change and diversified their operations.
” After staying on top of coronavirus regulations , and weeks of pleasant weather , Tangerini ’ s Farm is moving on to pumpkins and hayrides after its apple orchard was “ PICKED OVER !
” as its website declares , in red .
“ Usually by the first weekend in October or at @ @ @ @ @ @ @ don ’ t have any more apples left , ” says Ms. Chiarizio .
“ But we got picked over in the middle of September , which was wild .
”

“It’s nice to hear other people talking and having that conversation that a lot of people were lacking in the first three months [of the pandemic],” Ms. Smith says. “I’m just going to enjoy the day, make some caramel apples.”
Farmers, resilient to seasonal shifts, are well-equipped to handle crowds of eager visitors and are making the best of a tricky season.
Farmers are used to adapting to weather and other factors. Orchards that welcome visitors to the harvest are posting “masks required” signs and serving up a taste of nature and normalcy before winter sets in.
“Even in a normal year, family outings to pick apples is a time-honored tradition,” says Jim Bair, president of USApple, an industry group. “And this year, I think people are tired of looking at the same four walls.”
Elizabeth Kotoulis and Rachel Smith are wandering among the fruit trees at Brooksby Farm, enjoying a reprieve from Boston, where they both live. To enter the orchard and pick your own apples, you have to get in long lines, and everyone gets a squirt of hand sanitizer or uses the hand-washing station. Masks are required. It’s autumn in the heart of New England – and the time of the coronavirus – and business is booming.
Michelle Melanson only has a minute to talk. It’s Saturday, the sun is warm, and the leaves are just showing their fall colors – a recipe for a packed day at Brooksby Farm in Peabody.
“It has been an extremely busy season,” says Ms. Melanson, the farm’s store manager, her voice rising on the phone over the din of customers. Today, the lines for pick-your-own apples and pumpkins are particularly long.
And particularly clean. Everyone gets a squirt of hand sanitizer or uses the makeshift hand-washing station. Masks stay on inside and in line, though some visitors pull them off in the orchard, despite “masks are required” signs. It’s autumn in the heart of New England – and the time of the coronavirus – and business is booming.
Why We Wrote This Farmers are used to adapting to weather and other factors. Orchards that welcome visitors to the harvest are posting “masks required” signs and serving up a taste of nature and normalcy before winter sets in.
With Halloween around the corner and other businesses struggling through an economic downturn, orchards are hustling through peak season. Pick-your-own apples and pumpkins, with all the trimmings – cider donuts, hayrides, and corn mazes – are a draw for cooped-up families looking for safe outdoor activities. And farmers, resilient to seasonal shifts, are well-equipped to handle crowds of eager visitors.
“It’s been a fabulous year in terms of turnout,” says Ben Clark, owner of Clarkdale Fruit Farms in Deerfield. “People really want to be outside doing something with the family that’s safe and socially distanced. ... People are really looking for some normalcy.”
Mr. Clark is also president of the Massachusetts Fruit Growers Association. As farmers, “we were prepared just like we’d be prepared for a storm,” he says.
New England is fertile ground for smaller orchards that offer agritourism activities, a different breed from the huge commercial fruit operations mostly found in Washington state. But even outside New England, small orchards are seeing an uptick in business. “We’re absolutely hearing that from around the country,” says Jim Bair, president of USApple, an industry organization.
“Even in a normal year, family outings to pick apples is a time-honored tradition. And this year, I think people are tired of looking at the same four walls,” he says.
At Brooksby Farm, Elizabeth Kotoulis and Rachel Smith wander among the apple trees, enjoying a reprieve from Boston, where they both live.
“I think it’s such a strange time, that I still feel guilty doing these kinds of things,” says Ms. Smith. “But you also kind of have to, for your mental health.”
Jules Struck/The Christian Science Monitor View caption Hide caption Shoppers peruse the Brooksby Farm pumpkin patch in Peabody, Massachusetts, Oct. 3, 2020. Nearby, a line of 30 people waits to enter the farm store. Some pick-your-own farms have had to cancel typical fall events such as Halloween haunted houses, but many are seeing an uptick in visitors.
“This is like the least bad thing you could do right now,” Ms. Kotoulis says. The nearest group of visitors inspects a tree several yards away.
“It’s nice to hear other people talking and having that conversation that a lot of people were lacking in the first three months [of the pandemic],” Ms. Smith agrees. “I’m just going to enjoy the day, make some caramel apples.”
The pair’s stroll was well-orchestrated by the farm, with all the usual sanitization protocols and only a certain number of people allowed in the orchard at one time.
Some farms, like Tangerini’s Spring Street Farm in Millis, Massachusetts, are asking visitors to reserve a day and time for hay-bale rides or apple picking to control crowds. They’ve also made their produce available for curbside pickup and home delivery.
“Thank goodness for our laminator,” says Linda Chiarizio, who owns Tangerini’s with her husband, Steve, and has put up a lot of signs in the last few months instructing visitors how to safely move around her farm. Near The Farmer’s Porch, their restaurant, where people dine in the open air, the Chiarizios have parked an old flatbed army truck – a makeshift stage for live music at a distance.
Some Halloween festivals are nixed, however. Connors Farm in Danvers, Massachusetts, is skipping Hysteria, its haunted farm and flashlight maze event. And large events in general, like weddings and birthday parties, are off the table.
But farmers have made the best of a tricky season. That’s business as usual, says Mr. Clark. “Farmers by nature are resilient because we have to be,” he says. “Many farms ... have survived for generations because they’ve adapted to change and diversified their operations.”
After staying on top of coronavirus regulations, and weeks of pleasant weather, Tangerini’s Farm is moving on to pumpkins and hayrides after its apple orchard was “PICKED OVER!” as its website declares, in red.
“Usually by the first weekend in October or at least Columbus Day weekend, we usually don’t have any more apples left,” says Ms. Chiarizio. “But we got picked over in the middle of September, which was wild.”


csmonitor--2020-10-08--Nobel literature prize awarded to US poet laureate Louise Glück

American poet Louise Glück won the Nobel Prize in Literature on Thursday for her “ candid and uncompromising ” work , which looks unflinchingly and with biting humor at loss and trauma , especially in family life .
She joins a handful of American poets who have received the prize , which has been dominated by novelists since the first award in 1901 .
The last American to win was Bob Dylan in 2016 .
She is also one of the few women honored – the 16th female Nobel Literature laureate .
Ms. Glück , who shuns most publicity , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ from her home in Cambridge , Massachusetts , that her phone was ringing off the hook , and she was struggling to express her feelings about the award .
The Nobel Committee praised Ms. Glück “ for her unmistakable poetic voice that with austere beauty makes individual existence universal ” in its citation .
Announcing the award in Stockholm , Mats Malm , the Swedish Academy permanent secretary , said he had spoken to Ms. Glück , and the news “ came as a surprise – but a welcome one as far as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ interview with the Academy of Achievement , Ms. Glück noted that “ worldly honor makes existence in the world easier ” but said he true goal as an artist was “ not capable of being had in my lifetime.
” “ I want to live after I die , in that ancient way , ” she said .
“ And there ’ s no way of knowing whether that will happen , and there will be no knowing , no matter how many blue ribbons have been plastered to my corpse.
” New @ @ @ @ @ @ @ faculty member at Yale University , made her debut in 1968 with “ Firstborn , ” and “ was soon acclaimed as one of the most prominent poets in American contemporary literature , ” the committee said .
Anders Olsson , chairman of the Nobel literature committee , said Ms. Glück ’ s 12 collections of poetry were “ characterized by striving for clarity.
” Mr. Olsson said her verses , which often draw on classical influences and examine family life , were marked by an “ austere but also playful intelligence and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in a family with Hungarian Jewish origins , Ms. Glück has spoken of how a teenage struggle with anorexia , and the therapy she received for it , influenced her incisive writing .
“ Louise Glück ’ s voice is unmistakable .
It is candid and uncompromising , and it signals that this poet wants to be understood .
But it is also voice full of humor and biting wit , ” Mr. Olsson said .
“ This is a great resource when Glück treats one of our great topics , radical change @ @ @ @ @ @ @ from a deep sense of loss.
” Ms. Glück ’ s poetry collections include “ Descending Figure , ” “ Ararat , ” and “ The Triumph of Achilles , ” which was published in 1985 and won the National Book Critics Circle Award .
It contains one of her most anthologized poems , the spare and despairing “ Mock Orange , ” in which a flowering shrub becomes the focus of a wider wail of anguish about sex and life : “ How can I rest ?
/ How can I be @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that odor in the world ?
” The committee described her 2006 collection “ Averno ” as “ masterly ” and “ a visionary interpretation of the myth of Persephone ’ s descent into hell in the captivity of Hades , the god of death.
” Ms. Glück is the recipient of many awards , including Guggenheim and National Endowment for the Arts fellowships , the American Academy of Arts and Letters Gold Medal in Poetry , and the National Humanities Medal .
She won the Pulitzer Prize in 1993 for “ The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Award for “ Faithful and Virtuous Night ” in 2014 .
She was the United States poet laureate from 2003 to 2004 .
Nobel laureates receive a $ 1.1 million prize and are usually feted at a banquet in December , but the event was canceled this year because of the coronavirus pandemic .
This year ’ s winners will be invited to attend in 2021 .
The literature prize comes after several years of controversy and scandal for the organization that awards the accolade .
In 2018 , the award was postponed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Academy , which names the Nobel literature committee , and sparked a mass exodus of members .
After the academy revamped itself in a bid to regain the trust of the Nobel Foundation , two laureates were named last year , with the 2018 prize going to Poland ’ s Olga Tokarczuk and the 2019 award to Austria ’ s Peter Handke .
But Mr. Handke ’ s prize caused a storm of protest : A strong supporter of the Serbs during the 1990s Balkan wars , he has been called an apologist @ @ @ @ @ @ @ including Albania , Bosnia and Turkey boycotted the Nobel awards ceremony in protest , and a member of the committee that nominates candidates for the literature prize resigned .
On Monday , the Nobel Committee awarded the prize for physiology and medicine for discovering hepatitis C virus .
Tuesday ’ s prize for physics honored breakthroughs in understanding the mysteries of black holes , and the chemistry prize on Wednesday went to scientists behind a powerful gene-editing tool .
Still to come are prizes for outstanding work in the fields of peace and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ The Associated Press .
Lawless reported from London .
AP writers Frank Jordans in Berlin and Hillel Italie in New York contributed .

American poet Louise Glück won the Nobel Prize in Literature on Thursday for her “candid and uncompromising” work, which looks unflinchingly and with biting humor at loss and trauma, especially in family life.
She joins a handful of American poets who have received the prize, which has been dominated by novelists since the first award in 1901. The last American to win was Bob Dylan in 2016. She is also one of the few women honored – the 16th female Nobel Literature laureate.
Ms. Glück, who shuns most publicity, told Sweden’s TT news agency from her home in Cambridge, Massachusetts, that her phone was ringing off the hook, and she was struggling to express her feelings about the award.
The Nobel Committee praised Ms. Glück “for her unmistakable poetic voice that with austere beauty makes individual existence universal” in its citation.
Announcing the award in Stockholm, Mats Malm, the Swedish Academy permanent secretary, said he had spoken to Ms. Glück, and the news “came as a surprise – but a welcome one as far as I could tell.”
In a 2012 interview with the Academy of Achievement, Ms. Glück noted that “worldly honor makes existence in the world easier” but said he true goal as an artist was “not capable of being had in my lifetime.”
“I want to live after I die, in that ancient way,” she said. “And there’s no way of knowing whether that will happen, and there will be no knowing, no matter how many blue ribbons have been plastered to my corpse.”
New York-born Ms. Glück, who is a faculty member at Yale University, made her debut in 1968 with “Firstborn,” and “was soon acclaimed as one of the most prominent poets in American contemporary literature,” the committee said.
Anders Olsson, chairman of the Nobel literature committee, said Ms. Glück’s 12 collections of poetry were “characterized by striving for clarity.”
Mr. Olsson said her verses, which often draw on classical influences and examine family life, were marked by an “austere but also playful intelligence and a refined sense of composition.”
Raised in a family with Hungarian Jewish origins, Ms. Glück has spoken of how a teenage struggle with anorexia, and the therapy she received for it, influenced her incisive writing.
“Louise Glück’s voice is unmistakable. It is candid and uncompromising, and it signals that this poet wants to be understood. But it is also voice full of humor and biting wit,” Mr. Olsson said. “This is a great resource when Glück treats one of our great topics, radical change, where the leap forward is made from a deep sense of loss.”
Ms. Glück’s poetry collections include “Descending Figure,” “Ararat,” and “The Triumph of Achilles,” which was published in 1985 and won the National Book Critics Circle Award. It contains one of her most anthologized poems, the spare and despairing “Mock Orange,” in which a flowering shrub becomes the focus of a wider wail of anguish about sex and life: “How can I rest? / How can I be content / when there is still / that odor in the world?”
The committee described her 2006 collection “Averno” as “masterly” and “a visionary interpretation of the myth of Persephone’s descent into hell in the captivity of Hades, the god of death.”
Ms. Glück is the recipient of many awards, including Guggenheim and National Endowment for the Arts fellowships, the American Academy of Arts and Letters Gold Medal in Poetry, and the National Humanities Medal.
She won the Pulitzer Prize in 1993 for “The Wild Iris” and the National Book Award for “Faithful and Virtuous Night” in 2014. She was the United States poet laureate from 2003 to 2004.
Nobel laureates receive a $1.1 million prize and are usually feted at a banquet in December, but the event was canceled this year because of the coronavirus pandemic. This year’s winners will be invited to attend in 2021.
The literature prize comes after several years of controversy and scandal for the organization that awards the accolade.
In 2018, the award was postponed after sex abuse allegations rocked the Swedish Academy, which names the Nobel literature committee, and sparked a mass exodus of members.
After the academy revamped itself in a bid to regain the trust of the Nobel Foundation, two laureates were named last year, with the 2018 prize going to Poland’s Olga Tokarczuk and the 2019 award to Austria’s Peter Handke.
But Mr. Handke’s prize caused a storm of protest: A strong supporter of the Serbs during the 1990s Balkan wars, he has been called an apologist for Serbian war crimes. Several countries including Albania, Bosnia and Turkey boycotted the Nobel awards ceremony in protest, and a member of the committee that nominates candidates for the literature prize resigned.
On Monday, the Nobel Committee awarded the prize for physiology and medicine for discovering hepatitis C virus. Tuesday’s prize for physics honored breakthroughs in understanding the mysteries of black holes, and the chemistry prize on Wednesday went to scientists behind a powerful gene-editing tool.
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empower and uplift daily. By signing up, you agree to our Privacy Policy Already a subscriber? Log in to hide ads.
Still to come are prizes for outstanding work in the fields of peace and economics.
This story was reported by The Associated Press. Lawless reported from London. AP writers Frank Jordans in Berlin and Hillel Italie in New York contributed.


csmonitor--2020-10-08--Young whales find dining haven in New York City waters

If you ’ re young and hungry , the place to go is New York City – even if you weigh 25 tons and have a blowhole .
Whale watch captains and scientists around America ’ s most populous city say recent years have seen a tremendous surge in the number of whales observed in the waters around the Big Apple .
Many of the whales are juvenile humpbacks , and scientists say they ’ re drawn to New York by an abundance of the small fish they love to eat .
There are numerous theories about why whales are @ @ @ @ @ @ @ one of the most widely held is that the menhaden population has grown around New York and New Jersey .
Menhaden are small , schooling fish that humpbacks relish , and environmentalists believe cleaner waters and stricter conservation laws have increased their numbers near New York City .
Gotham Whale , a New York City-based whale research organization , made more than 300 observations of 500 total whales in 2019 , said Paul Sieswerda , the nonprofit ’ s president .
That ’ s up from three sightings of five whales in 2011 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , he said .
“ Somehow or other more and more whales seem to be getting the message that New York is a good place to dine , ” Mr. Sieswerda said .
“ That kind of magnitude of increase is just phenomenal.
” The resurgence of whales in the New York-New Jersey Bight , a triangle-shaped indentation in the Atlantic coast , has attracted tourists who want to see and photograph the giant marine mammals .
But the concentration of whales near New York City also poses risks to the mammals , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ heavily traversed waters on the planet .
The whales are essentially “ playing in traffic ” by feeding so close to busy shipping lanes , Mr. Sieswerda said .
And the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has already declared an “ unusual mortality event ” for humpback whales from Maine to Florida in recent years due to an elevated number of deaths .
Since 2016 , NOAA records show 133 humpback whales have died on the beaches and waters of the Atlantic coast .
The 29 in New York were the most of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ examined , half had evidence of human interaction , such as a ship strike or entanglement in fishing gear .
The appearance of so many whales near New York City calls for environmental stewardship , said Howard Rosenbaum , director of the Wildlife Conservation Society ’ s Ocean Giants Program .
Environmental safeguards , such as the Clean Water Act and Marine Mammal Protection Act , likely helped bring the whales back to New York ’ s bustling waterways , and more protection can help keep them safe there , he said .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ and federal agencies working together “ to minimize the risk to animals that are using these habitats to feed , ” Mr. Rosenbaum said .
That could include implementing new laws to protect the mammals from ship strikes , he said .
Such laws have sometimes included speed reductions in areas where whales travel and feed .
The increased sighting of whales off New York City isn ’ t necessarily evidence that the total whale population is growing , said Danielle Brown , the lead humpback whale researcher with Gotham Whale and a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ New York whales aren ’ t a standalone population , but rather members of feeding populations that mostly live farther north , such as in the Gulf of Maine , Ms. Brown said .
And it ’ s unclear whether the whales are in New York because the larger population is growing .
Ms. Brown and other scientists have observed that the presence of the giant whales off New York City could take mariners by surprise , and that could put the mammals at risk of ship strikes or other hazards .
Increasingly @ @ @ @ @ @ @ fish to feed on could keep the whales in the New York area for the foreseeable future , she said .
“ This is most likely going to continue , and we have to find a way to coexist with these large animals in our waters , ” Ms. Brown said .
This story was reported by The Associated Press .
Patrick Whittle reported from Portland , Maine .

If you’re young and hungry, the place to go is New York City – even if you weigh 25 tons and have a blowhole.
Whale watch captains and scientists around America’s most populous city say recent years have seen a tremendous surge in the number of whales observed in the waters around the Big Apple. Many of the whales are juvenile humpbacks, and scientists say they’re drawn to New York by an abundance of the small fish they love to eat.
There are numerous theories about why whales are suddenly flocking to the city, but one of the most widely held is that the menhaden population has grown around New York and New Jersey. Menhaden are small, schooling fish that humpbacks relish, and environmentalists believe cleaner waters and stricter conservation laws have increased their numbers near New York City.
Gotham Whale, a New York City-based whale research organization, made more than 300 observations of 500 total whales in 2019, said Paul Sieswerda, the nonprofit’s president. That’s up from three sightings of five whales in 2011, after which a steady climb began, he said.
“Somehow or other more and more whales seem to be getting the message that New York is a good place to dine,” Mr. Sieswerda said. “That kind of magnitude of increase is just phenomenal.”
The resurgence of whales in the New York-New Jersey Bight, a triangle-shaped indentation in the Atlantic coast, has attracted tourists who want to see and photograph the giant marine mammals. But the concentration of whales near New York City also poses risks to the mammals, as they ply some of the most heavily traversed waters on the planet.
The whales are essentially “playing in traffic” by feeding so close to busy shipping lanes, Mr. Sieswerda said. And the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has already declared an “unusual mortality event” for humpback whales from Maine to Florida in recent years due to an elevated number of deaths.
Since 2016, NOAA records show 133 humpback whales have died on the beaches and waters of the Atlantic coast. The 29 in New York were the most of any state. Of the dead whales examined, half had evidence of human interaction, such as a ship strike or entanglement in fishing gear.
The appearance of so many whales near New York City calls for environmental stewardship, said Howard Rosenbaum, director of the Wildlife Conservation Society’s Ocean Giants Program. Environmental safeguards, such as the Clean Water Act and Marine Mammal Protection Act, likely helped bring the whales back to New York’s bustling waterways, and more protection can help keep them safe there, he said.
That will take nongovernmental organizations and state and federal agencies working together “to minimize the risk to animals that are using these habitats to feed,” Mr. Rosenbaum said. That could include implementing new laws to protect the mammals from ship strikes, he said. Such laws have sometimes included speed reductions in areas where whales travel and feed.
The increased sighting of whales off New York City isn’t necessarily evidence that the total whale population is growing, said Danielle Brown, the lead humpback whale researcher with Gotham Whale and a doctoral student at Rutgers University.
The New York whales aren’t a standalone population, but rather members of feeding populations that mostly live farther north, such as in the Gulf of Maine, Ms. Brown said. And it’s unclear whether the whales are in New York because the larger population is growing.
Ms. Brown and other scientists have observed that the presence of the giant whales off New York City could take mariners by surprise, and that could put the mammals at risk of ship strikes or other hazards. Increasingly clean water and a growing diversity of fish to feed on could keep the whales in the New York area for the foreseeable future, she said.
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empower and uplift daily. By signing up, you agree to our Privacy Policy Already a subscriber? Log in to hide ads.
“This is most likely going to continue, and we have to find a way to coexist with these large animals in our waters,” Ms. Brown said.
This story was reported by The Associated Press. Patrick Whittle reported from Portland, Maine.


csmonitor--2020-10-08--After debate is set to go virtual, Trump says he won’t attend

President Donald Trump vowed Thursday not to participate in next week ’ s debate with Democratic nominee Joe Biden after the debate organizers announced it will take place virtually because of the president ’ s recent diagnosis of COVID-19 .
The Commission on Presidential Debates announced early Thursday the candidates would “ participate from separate remote locations ” while the participants and moderator remain in Miami , where the debate was scheduled to be held .
Moments later , Mr. Trump vowed to skip the event entirely .
“ I ’ m not going to do a virtual debate , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
The shakeup comes a week before Mr. Trump and Mr. Biden were set to square off for the second of three presidential debates .
Mr. Biden ’ s campaign insisted its candidate was ready to move forward , but the future of the event is now in serious doubt .
The Commission on Presidential Debates made the decision unilaterally , citing the need “ to protect the health and safety of all involved with the second presidential debate.
” When Republican Mike Pence and Democrat Kamala Harris squared off for their only @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on Wednesday night , they shared a stage but were separated by plexiglass in an effort to help prevent the spread of the virus .
Mr. Trump ’ s campaign said the president would do a rally instead of the debate .
“ For the swamp creatures at the Presidential Debate Commission to now rush to Joe Biden ’ s defense by unilaterally canceling an in-person debate is pathetic , ” Bill Stepien , Trump campaign manager said in a statement .
“ The safety of all involved can easily be achieved without @ @ @ @ @ @ @ both candidates go head to head .
We ’ ll pass on this sad excuse to bail out Joe Biden and do a rally instead.
” Mr. Trump was hospitalized for three days but is now back at the White House recovering .
He has vowed to return to the campaign trail soon .
Still , the commission ’ s move is yet another indication that the presidential election is being dominated by the virus – defying the president ’ s months-long attempts to underplay it and declare that the country was ready @ @ @ @ @ @ @ thought to be trailing in key battleground states .
Even before his COVID-19 diagnosis , he was widely criticized for his chaotic performance during last week ’ s first presidential debate in Cleveland , Ohio .
Next week ’ s debate , and a third one set for the following week in Nashville , would have been a chance for him to attempt to reset the election and potentially change its trajectory .
Mr. Biden ’ s aides argued that Mr. Trump ’ s pulling out could be a boon to their candidate @ @ @ @ @ @ @ debate , they believe most voters , especially undecided voters , will see the president as avoiding a second debate out of his own interests , not because he dislikes the format .
“ Vice President Biden looks forward to speaking directly to the American people , ” deputy Biden campaign manager Kate Bedingfield said in a statement .
Mr. Biden said earlier in the week that he was “ looking forward to being able to debate him ” but added “ we ’ re going to have to follow very strict guidelines.
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ shouldn ’ t have a debate ” as long as the president remains COVID positive .
Mr. Trump was diagnosed with the coronavirus a week ago , but in a Tuesday tweet said he looked forward to debating Mr. Biden a second time .
“ It will be great !
” he tweeted .
He fell ill with the virus last Thursday , just 48 hours after debating Mr. Biden in person for the first time in Cleveland .
While the two candidates remained a dozen feet apart during the debate , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ concerns for Mr. Biden and sent him to undergo multiple COVID-19 tests before returning to the campaign trail .
Mr. Trump was still contagious with the virus when he was discharged from Walter Reed National Military Medical Center on Monday but his doctors have not provided any detailed update on his status .
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention , those with mild to moderate symptoms of COVID-19 can be contagious for as many as – and should isolate for at least – 10 days .
The debate wouldn ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ candidates are not in the same room .
In 1960 , the third presidential debate between Richard Nixon and John F. Kennedy was broadcast with the two candidates on opposite coasts .
This story was reported by The Associated Press .
Editor ’ s note : As a public service , the Monitor has removed the paywall for all our coronavirus coverage .
It ’ s free .

President Donald Trump vowed Thursday not to participate in next week’s debate with Democratic nominee Joe Biden after the debate organizers announced it will take place virtually because of the president’s recent diagnosis of COVID-19.
The Commission on Presidential Debates announced early Thursday the candidates would “participate from separate remote locations” while the participants and moderator remain in Miami, where the debate was scheduled to be held. Moments later, Mr. Trump vowed to skip the event entirely.
“I’m not going to do a virtual debate,” Mr. Trump told Fox Business News.
The shakeup comes a week before Mr. Trump and Mr. Biden were set to square off for the second of three presidential debates. Mr. Biden’s campaign insisted its candidate was ready to move forward, but the future of the event is now in serious doubt.
The Commission on Presidential Debates made the decision unilaterally, citing the need “to protect the health and safety of all involved with the second presidential debate.”
When Republican Mike Pence and Democrat Kamala Harris squared off for their only vice presidential debate in Salt Lake City on Wednesday night, they shared a stage but were separated by plexiglass in an effort to help prevent the spread of the virus.
Mr. Trump’s campaign said the president would do a rally instead of the debate.
“For the swamp creatures at the Presidential Debate Commission to now rush to Joe Biden’s defense by unilaterally canceling an in-person debate is pathetic,” Bill Stepien, Trump campaign manager said in a statement. “The safety of all involved can easily be achieved without canceling a chance for voters to see both candidates go head to head. We’ll pass on this sad excuse to bail out Joe Biden and do a rally instead.”
Mr. Trump was hospitalized for three days but is now back at the White House recovering. He has vowed to return to the campaign trail soon. Still, the commission’s move is yet another indication that the presidential election is being dominated by the virus – defying the president’s months-long attempts to underplay it and declare that the country was ready to move on.
Mr. Trump is thought to be trailing in key battleground states. Even before his COVID-19 diagnosis, he was widely criticized for his chaotic performance during last week’s first presidential debate in Cleveland, Ohio. Next week’s debate, and a third one set for the following week in Nashville, would have been a chance for him to attempt to reset the election and potentially change its trajectory.
Mr. Biden’s aides argued that Mr. Trump’s pulling out could be a boon to their candidate. Given reactions to the chaotic first debate, they believe most voters, especially undecided voters, will see the president as avoiding a second debate out of his own interests, not because he dislikes the format.
“Vice President Biden looks forward to speaking directly to the American people,” deputy Biden campaign manager Kate Bedingfield said in a statement.
Mr. Biden said earlier in the week that he was “looking forward to being able to debate him” but added “we’re going to have to follow very strict guidelines.” He said he and Mr. Trump “shouldn’t have a debate” as long as the president remains COVID positive.
Mr. Trump was diagnosed with the coronavirus a week ago, but in a Tuesday tweet said he looked forward to debating Mr. Biden a second time. “It will be great!” he tweeted.
He fell ill with the virus last Thursday, just 48 hours after debating Mr. Biden in person for the first time in Cleveland. While the two candidates remained a dozen feet apart during the debate, Mr. Trump’s infection sparked health concerns for Mr. Biden and sent him to undergo multiple COVID-19 tests before returning to the campaign trail.
Mr. Trump was still contagious with the virus when he was discharged from Walter Reed National Military Medical Center on Monday but his doctors have not provided any detailed update on his status. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, those with mild to moderate symptoms of COVID-19 can be contagious for as many as – and should isolate for at least – 10 days.
The debate wouldn’t be the first in which the candidates are not in the same room. In 1960, the third presidential debate between Richard Nixon and John F. Kennedy was broadcast with the two candidates on opposite coasts.
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This story was reported by The Associated Press.
Editor’s note: As a public service, the Monitor has removed the paywall for all our coronavirus coverage. It’s free.


csmonitor--2020-10-08--‘The strength of people’s hearts’: Venezuelan doctors, neighbors unite

“ People always talk about Venezuela , how it ’ s collapsing , and they ’ re right , ” Dr. Navas says .
“ But the crisis has also shown the strength of people ’ s hearts.
” For many , the project is a way of pushing back against a repressive government that continues to report extremely low infection rates and is accused of cracking down on medical professionals who try to speak out about COVID-19 .
But when COVID-19 arrived in Latin America last spring , work conditions got exponentially worse .
That ’ s why Dr. @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a grassroots support network to bridge the gap between helping patients and making sure they have the protective gear to safely do so .
Over the past three months , the effort to raise funds for the purchase and delivery of personal protective equipment to medical professionals has spread to 23 states as well as the capital , Caracas .
After years of political and economic crises in Venezuela , Dr. Oscar Navas is accustomed to working in a hospital where patients often have to bring their own medical supplies , and basic @ @ @ @ @ @ @ t always available .
Dr. Oscar Navas knew from the start of COVID-19 that if he wanted protective gear at work , he ’ d have to come up with a solution himself .
That ’ s because he works in Venezuela , where shortages of medical supplies and basic food products have long been the norm .
Amid yearslong political and economic crises , he ’ s accustomed to working in a hospital where the water and power go out regularly , and where patients often have to bring their own medical @ @ @ @ @ @ @ coronavirus , Dr. Navas says working in a Venezuelan hospital is like “ going to war naked.
” That ’ s why he and other doctors across Venezuela created a grassroots support network in July to try and bridge the ever-growing gap between helping patients and making sure they have the gear to safely do so .
Over the past three months , the effort to raise funds for personal protective equipment for medical professionals has spread to all 23 states as well as the capital , Caracas .
In Dr. Navas ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ arrived from local communities .
Neighbors pooled resources to help the doctors who treated them or their loved ones .
Others have contributed from farther afield , like doctors who fled Venezuela in recent years , raising money in their new host countries .
For many , the project is a way of pushing back against a government that continues to report extremely low infection rates and is accused of cracking down on medical professionals who try to speak out about the realities on the ground .
“ We ’ ve seen massive @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ People always talk about Venezuela , how it ’ s collapsing , and they ’ re right .
But the crisis has also shown the strength of people ’ s hearts.
” Shortages of COVID-19 safety gear have been common across the globe , but the situation in Venezuela is more complex than a challenge of simple supply and demand .
More than 5 million people have fled the Andean nation in recent years .
The petro-economy is in tailspin , with poverty and desperation exacerbated by hyperinflation and food shortages .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ and periodic clashes with a parallel Venezuelan government led by Juan Guaidó , which is recognized by the United States and at least 50 other nations .
Among the millions who have left are doctors , nurses , and medical students , resulting in sparsely-staffed hospitals and clinics .
“ Things have become more critical , ” says Jaime Lorenzo , executive director of United Doctors of Venezuela , a multinational coalition trying to tackle the yearslong health care crisis .
He ’ s helped lead a separate national push to gather and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , dubbed “ Protect them from Covid-19.
” The initiative works to amplify the voices of doctors and nurses , track deaths of medical professionals , and create a pathway for the delivery of local and international donations .
COVID-19 has only intensified the risks of practicing medicine in Venezuela , Dr. Lorenzo says .
Some doctors or nurses have reused masks or used homemade ones that may not meet standards .
Others , like him , buy their own gear from contacts they trust , online shops , or pharmacies .
But @ @ @ @ @ @ @ it .
Doctors in public hospitals make $ 12 to $ 14 a month , while nurses make $ 8 to $ 10 a month , according to Dr. Lorenzo and professionals interviewed for this story .
“ People laugh because they think [ these are ] hourly ” wages , says Dr. Lorenzo , who has more than 30 years of experience .
“ No , this is our monthly salary.
” The Hospital Universitario Doctor Luís Razetti , where Dr. Navas works , is the main COVID-19 treatment center in the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ no running water today , he says by telephone , and when donations lag , medical teams have taken to rationing products like disinfectant .
President Nicolás Maduro ’ s government has reported around 80,000 cases and 658 deaths – likely a severe undercount , watchdogs say .
Neighboring Colombia , which emerged from nearly six months of quarantine in September , has reported 870,000 cases and more than 27,000 deaths .
A lack of testing , combined with a state campaign that denounces people who may have come into contact with the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ many Venezuelans from seeking help , critics say .
Some 13 of Dr. Navas ’ colleagues have died over the past six months .
As of Oct. 5 , at least 213 medical workers have died from the coronavirus across Venezuela , making up one-third of the total deaths reported , says Dr. Lorenzo , whose organization is trying to track deaths .
Over the summer , when Dr. Navas says his hospital was overwhelmed , he put out a call to his broader community for help .
Mr. Santoyo and his parents @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and his mother recovered , but his father died two weeks later .
“ I thought I was living through a horror movie , ” Mr. Santoyo says .
When Dr. Navas rang asking for Mr. Santoyo ’ s help in organizing donations , he saw it as a chance to give meaning to his father ’ s death .
“ Despite all the pain that comes with losing a loved one in the way I lost my father , I said , ‘ Well , someone has to do something in this @ @ @ @ @ @ @ they don ’ t have enough money ’ ” to buy even the basics , Mr. Santoyo recalls .
Mr. Santoyo began making phone calls to neighbors and friends .
By mid-September their team of five informal fundraisers quickly quadrupled as donations began rolling in .
People give what they can .
He says those who have had family members with COVID-19 have pooled resources to purchase equipment at sky-high prices in pharmacies or on the black market .
Restaurants are donating meals for medical professionals working long hours , and pharmacies have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Many , fearful of potential backlash from the government , donate anonymously .
In the span of three weeks in September , the initiative delivered over 3,000 face masks , 2,000 meals , gallons of sanitizing alcohol , hand disinfectant and soap , and boxes of gloves .
“ Instead of quitting , instead of sitting with our hands tied , we dedicated ourselves to raising our voices , ” Dr. Navas says .
“ What we ’ re doing is deciding to keep going , and deciding to search for personal @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for our people through less conventional means.
” It ’ s time-consuming , tedious – and lifesaving .
But there ’ s a need for more sustainable solutions , says Tamara Taraciuk Broner , acting deputy Americas director for Human Rights Watch .
“ These campaigns are super important , but they won ’ t solve the problem , ” she says .
“ What you really need is a massive humanitarian response , ” something the Maduro government has largely blocked in recent years .
Dr. Navas agrees , but he ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
“ I ’ m always scared we ’ re going to run out of [ donated safety ] kits .
But what ’ s greater than my fear is my faith , ” he says .
“ I ’ m hopeful they won ’ t run out because I know that our people will keep helping us .
”

“People always talk about Venezuela, how it’s collapsing, and they’re right,” Dr. Navas says. “But the crisis has also shown the strength of people’s hearts.”
For many, the project is a way of pushing back against a repressive government that continues to report extremely low infection rates and is accused of cracking down on medical professionals who try to speak out about COVID-19.
COVID-19 equipment shortages have challenged nations around the world, but Venezuela’s political and economic crises make the pandemic particularly severe. Medical workers have united to find a solution.
But when COVID-19 arrived in Latin America last spring, work conditions got exponentially worse. That’s why Dr. Navas and other doctors across Venezuela created a grassroots support network to bridge the gap between helping patients and making sure they have the protective gear to safely do so. Over the past three months, the effort to raise funds for the purchase and delivery of personal protective equipment to medical professionals has spread to 23 states as well as the capital, Caracas.
After years of political and economic crises in Venezuela, Dr. Oscar Navas is accustomed to working in a hospital where patients often have to bring their own medical supplies, and basic services like water and light aren’t always available.
Dr. Oscar Navas knew from the start of COVID-19 that if he wanted protective gear at work, he’d have to come up with a solution himself.
That’s because he works in Venezuela, where shortages of medical supplies and basic food products have long been the norm. Amid yearslong political and economic crises, he’s accustomed to working in a hospital where the water and power go out regularly, and where patients often have to bring their own medical supplies for surgeries.
But amid the coronavirus, Dr. Navas says working in a Venezuelan hospital is like “going to war naked.”
Why We Wrote This COVID-19 equipment shortages have challenged nations around the world, but Venezuela’s political and economic crises make the pandemic particularly severe. Medical workers have united to find a solution.
That’s why he and other doctors across Venezuela created a grassroots support network in July to try and bridge the ever-growing gap between helping patients and making sure they have the gear to safely do so. Over the past three months, the effort to raise funds for personal protective equipment for medical professionals has spread to all 23 states as well as the capital, Caracas. In Dr. Navas’ northeastern coastal city of Barcelona, donations arrived from local communities. Neighbors pooled resources to help the doctors who treated them or their loved ones. Others have contributed from farther afield, like doctors who fled Venezuela in recent years, raising money in their new host countries.
For many, the project is a way of pushing back against a government that continues to report extremely low infection rates and is accused of cracking down on medical professionals who try to speak out about the realities on the ground.
“We’ve seen massive solidarity,” Dr. Navas says. “People always talk about Venezuela, how it’s collapsing, and they’re right. But the crisis has also shown the strength of people’s hearts.”
High costs
Shortages of COVID-19 safety gear have been common across the globe, but the situation in Venezuela is more complex than a challenge of simple supply and demand.
More than 5 million people have fled the Andean nation in recent years. The petro-economy is in tailspin, with poverty and desperation exacerbated by hyperinflation and food shortages. There are political crackdowns on opposition voices and periodic clashes with a parallel Venezuelan government led by Juan Guaidó, which is recognized by the United States and at least 50 other nations. Among the millions who have left are doctors, nurses, and medical students, resulting in sparsely-staffed hospitals and clinics.
Courtesy of Razetti Somos Todos View caption Hide caption Doctors Carmen Grisanti (left) and Ricnia Vizcaino (right) go through a pile of personal protective equipment donated by neighbors and colleagues outside the country amid the COVID-19 pandemic, in their hospital in Barcelona, Venezuela.
“Things have become more critical,” says Jaime Lorenzo, executive director of United Doctors of Venezuela, a multinational coalition trying to tackle the yearslong health care crisis. He’s helped lead a separate national push to gather and deliver personal protective equipment to medical professionals, dubbed “Protect them from Covid-19.” The initiative works to amplify the voices of doctors and nurses, track deaths of medical professionals, and create a pathway for the delivery of local and international donations.
COVID-19 has only intensified the risks of practicing medicine in Venezuela, Dr. Lorenzo says. Some doctors or nurses have reused masks or used homemade ones that may not meet standards. Others, like him, buy their own gear from contacts they trust, online shops, or pharmacies.
But most in Venezuela can’t afford it. Doctors in public hospitals make $12 to $14 a month, while nurses make $8 to $10 a month, according to Dr. Lorenzo and professionals interviewed for this story.
A single N95 mask costs about $4.
“People laugh because they think [these are] hourly” wages, says Dr. Lorenzo, who has more than 30 years of experience. “No, this is our monthly salary.”
“Raising our voices”
The Hospital Universitario Doctor Luís Razetti, where Dr. Navas works, is the main COVID-19 treatment center in the state of Anzoátegui. There’s no running water today, he says by telephone, and when donations lag, medical teams have taken to rationing products like disinfectant.
President Nicolás Maduro’s government has reported around 80,000 cases and 658 deaths – likely a severe undercount, watchdogs say. Neighboring Colombia, which emerged from nearly six months of quarantine in September, has reported 870,000 cases and more than 27,000 deaths. A lack of testing, combined with a state campaign that denounces people who may have come into contact with the virus as “bioterrorists,” keeps many Venezuelans from seeking help, critics say.
Some 13 of Dr. Navas’ colleagues have died over the past six months. As of Oct. 5, at least 213 medical workers have died from the coronavirus across Venezuela, making up one-third of the total deaths reported, says Dr. Lorenzo, whose organization is trying to track deaths.
Courtesy of Razetti Somos Todos View caption Hide caption Doctors working in Hospital Universitario Doctor Luis Razetti's COVID-19 ward pose for a photo with a recovered patient in Barcelona, Venezuela. The country's pandemic response has been hampered by years of medical shortages.
Over the summer, when Dr. Navas says his hospital was overwhelmed, he put out a call to his broader community for help.
Carlos Santoyo answered.
Mr. Santoyo and his parents fell ill in late July. He and his mother recovered, but his father died two weeks later.
“I thought I was living through a horror movie,” Mr. Santoyo says.
When Dr. Navas rang asking for Mr. Santoyo’s help in organizing donations, he saw it as a chance to give meaning to his father’s death.
“Despite all the pain that comes with losing a loved one in the way I lost my father, I said, ‘Well, someone has to do something in this country. … People are dying because they don’t have enough money’” to buy even the basics, Mr. Santoyo recalls.
Mr. Santoyo began making phone calls to neighbors and friends. By mid-September their team of five informal fundraisers quickly quadrupled as donations began rolling in.
People give what they can. He says those who have had family members with COVID-19 have pooled resources to purchase equipment at sky-high prices in pharmacies or on the black market. Restaurants are donating meals for medical professionals working long hours, and pharmacies have contributed boxes of masks and basic medicine.
Many, fearful of potential backlash from the government, donate anonymously.
In the span of three weeks in September, the initiative delivered over 3,000 face masks, 2,000 meals, gallons of sanitizing alcohol, hand disinfectant and soap, and boxes of gloves.
“Instead of quitting, instead of sitting with our hands tied, we dedicated ourselves to raising our voices,” Dr. Navas says. “What we’re doing is deciding to keep going, and deciding to search for personal protection equipment that we need to care for our people through less conventional means.”
It’s time-consuming, tedious – and lifesaving. But there’s a need for more sustainable solutions, says Tamara Taraciuk Broner, acting deputy Americas director for Human Rights Watch.
“These campaigns are super important, but they won’t solve the problem,” she says. “What you really need is a massive humanitarian response,” something the Maduro government has largely blocked in recent years.
Dr. Navas agrees, but he’s trying to focus on the positive.
Get stories that
empower and uplift daily. By signing up, you agree to our Privacy Policy Already a subscriber? Log in to hide ads.
“I’m always scared we’re going to run out of [donated safety] kits. But what’s greater than my fear is my faith,” he says.
“I’m hopeful they won’t run out because I know that our people will keep helping us.”


csmonitor--2020-10-08--A more civil VP debate takes on climate change, taxes

Trading barbs through plexiglass shields , Republican Mike Pence and Democrat Kamala Harris turned the only vice presidential debate of 2020 into a dissection of the Trump administration ’ s handling of the coronavirus pandemic , with Ms. Harris labeling it “ the greatest failure of any presidential administration.
” Mr. Pence , who leads the president ’ s coronavirus task force , acknowledged that “ our nation ’ s gone through a very challenging time this year , ” yet vigorously defended the administration ’ s overall response to a pandemic that has killed more than 210,000 Americans .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ civil than last week ’ s chaotic face-off between President Donald Trump and Democrat Joe Biden , unfolded against an outbreak of coronavirus now hitting the highest levels of the United States government .
Mr. Trump spent three days at the hospital before returning to the White House on Monday , and more than a dozen White House and Pentagon officials are also infected , forcing even more into quarantine .
With less than four weeks before Election Day , the debate was one of the final opportunities for Mr. Trump and Mr. @ @ @ @ @ @ @ be slipping away .
They ’ re hoping to move the campaign ’ s focus away from the virus , but the president ’ s infection – and his downplaying of the consequences – are making that challenging .
Mr. Trump and Mr. Biden are scheduled to debate again on Oct. 15 , though the status of that meeting is unclear .
The president has said he wants to attend , but Mr. Biden says it shouldn ’ t move forward if Mr. Trump still has coronavirus .
Republicans desperately want to cast @ @ @ @ @ @ @ candidates fighting to move the country in vastly different directions .
Mr. Biden and Ms. Harris , they say , would pursue a far-left agenda bordering on socialism ; the Democrats say Mr. Trump ’ s administration will stoke racial and other divides , torpedo health care for people who aren ’ t wealthy , and otherwise undercut national strength .
Ms. Harris made history by becoming the first Black woman to stand on a vice presidential debate stage .
She condemned the police killings of Breonna Taylor in Kentucky and George Floyd @ @ @ @ @ @ @ against racial injustice in policing that followed , which Mr. Trump has portrayed as riots as he calls for law and order .
“ We are never going to condone violence but we must always fight for the values that we hold dear , ” Ms. Harris said .
“ I ’ m a former career prosecutor .
I know what I ’ m talking about .
Bad cops are bad for good cops.
” Mr. Pence said his heart breaks for Ms. Taylor ’ s family but he trusts the U.S. justice @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” that Ms. Harris , as a former attorney general and prosecutor , would question the grand jury ’ s decision in the case not to charge an officer with killing her .
He also pushed back against the existence of systemic racism in police departments and rejected the idea that law enforcement officers have a bias against minorities .
“ I want everyone to know who puts on the uniform of law enforcement every day , President Trump and I stand with you , ” Mr. Pence said .
“ We don @ @ @ @ @ @ @ law enforcement , proving public safety and supporting our African American neighbors.
” The candidates also clashed on taxes – or specifically , Mr. Trump ’ s refusal to release his tax returns four years after repeatedly promising to do so .
The New York Times reported last month that the president pays very little personal income tax but has hundreds of millions of dollars in debt .
“ It ’ d be really good to know who the president owes money to , ” Ms. Harris said .
“ The one thing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ it all out there .
He is honest , he is forthright , ” she added .
“ Donald Trump , on the other hand , has been about covering up everything.
” Mr. Pence defended Mr. Trump as a job creator who has paid more than his fair share of taxes and shifted toward Mr. Biden : “ On Day One , Joe Biden ’ s going to raise your taxes.
” Mr. Pence refused to say whether climate change was an existential threat or whether Mr. Trump would accept the election @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Harris declined to say whether Mr. Biden would push to expand the number of justices on the Supreme Court .
But so long as the coronavirus is ravaging the White House and killing several hundred Americans each day , the campaign will almost certainly be a referendum on the Trump administration ’ s inability to control the pandemic , which Republicans have sought to downplay or ignore altogether for several months .
Mr. Pence ’ s effort to focus on other topics was undercut by the mere fact that the candidates and moderator @ @ @ @ @ @ @ more than 12 feet apart , and facing a crowd of masked audience members who faced expulsion if they removed their face coverings .
The candidates on stage revealed negative test results earlier in the day .
While the audience was forced to wear face masks throughout , second lady Karen Pence removed her mask as she joined her husband on stage at the end of the debate .
Though the night was about Mr. Pence and Ms. Harris , the men at the top of the ticket also made their presence known @ @ @ @ @ @ @ three hours before the debate calling his diagnosis “ a blessing in disguise ” because it shed light on an experimental antibody combination that he credited for his improved condition – though neither he nor his doctors have a way of knowing whether the drug had that effect .
He tweeted several times during the debate , offering this assessment at one point : “ Mike Pence is doing GREAT !
She is a gaffe machine.
” Mr. Biden , too , kept a stream of tweets going ; he posted his plans @ @ @ @ @ @ @ from the debate exchanges and praised Ms. Harris , who he said “ is showing the American people why I chose her as my running mate.
” This story was reported by The Associated Press .
AP writer Steven Peoples reported from New York and Jill Colvin reported from Washington .
Editor ’ s note : As a public service , the Monitor has removed the paywall for all our coronavirus coverage .
It ’ s free .

Steve Peoples, Kathleen Ronayne, Michelle L. Price, and Jill Colvin

Trading barbs through plexiglass shields, Republican Mike Pence and Democrat Kamala Harris turned the only vice presidential debate of 2020 into a dissection of the Trump administration’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic, with Ms. Harris labeling it “the greatest failure of any presidential administration.”
Mr. Pence, who leads the president’s coronavirus task force, acknowledged that “our nation’s gone through a very challenging time this year,” yet vigorously defended the administration’s overall response to a pandemic that has killed more than 210,000 Americans.
The meeting, which was far more civil than last week’s chaotic face-off between President Donald Trump and Democrat Joe Biden, unfolded against an outbreak of coronavirus now hitting the highest levels of the United States government. Mr. Trump spent three days at the hospital before returning to the White House on Monday, and more than a dozen White House and Pentagon officials are also infected, forcing even more into quarantine.
With less than four weeks before Election Day, the debate was one of the final opportunities for Mr. Trump and Mr. Pence to reset a contest that could be slipping away. They’re hoping to move the campaign’s focus away from the virus, but the president’s infection – and his downplaying of the consequences – are making that challenging.
Mr. Trump and Mr. Biden are scheduled to debate again on Oct. 15, though the status of that meeting is unclear. The president has said he wants to attend, but Mr. Biden says it shouldn’t move forward if Mr. Trump still has coronavirus.
Republicans desperately want to cast the race as a choice between two candidates fighting to move the country in vastly different directions. Mr. Biden and Ms. Harris, they say, would pursue a far-left agenda bordering on socialism; the Democrats say Mr. Trump’s administration will stoke racial and other divides, torpedo health care for people who aren’t wealthy, and otherwise undercut national strength.
Ms. Harris made history by becoming the first Black woman to stand on a vice presidential debate stage. She condemned the police killings of Breonna Taylor in Kentucky and George Floyd in Minnesota and spoke about the protests against racial injustice in policing that followed, which Mr. Trump has portrayed as riots as he calls for law and order.
“We are never going to condone violence but we must always fight for the values that we hold dear,” Ms. Harris said. “I’m a former career prosecutor. I know what I’m talking about. Bad cops are bad for good cops.”
Mr. Pence said his heart breaks for Ms. Taylor’s family but he trusts the U.S. justice system. He called it “remarkable” that Ms. Harris, as a former attorney general and prosecutor, would question the grand jury’s decision in the case not to charge an officer with killing her.
He also pushed back against the existence of systemic racism in police departments and rejected the idea that law enforcement officers have a bias against minorities.
“I want everyone to know who puts on the uniform of law enforcement every day, President Trump and I stand with you,” Mr. Pence said. “We don’t have to choose between supporting law enforcement, proving public safety and supporting our African American neighbors.”
The candidates also clashed on taxes – or specifically, Mr. Trump’s refusal to release his tax returns four years after repeatedly promising to do so. The New York Times reported last month that the president pays very little personal income tax but has hundreds of millions of dollars in debt.
“It’d be really good to know who the president owes money to,” Ms. Harris said.
“The one thing we know about Joe, he puts it all out there. He is honest, he is forthright,” she added. “Donald Trump, on the other hand, has been about covering up everything.”
Mr. Pence defended Mr. Trump as a job creator who has paid more than his fair share of taxes and shifted toward Mr. Biden: “On Day One, Joe Biden’s going to raise your taxes.”
Both candidates sidestepped difficult questions at times.
Mr. Pence refused to say whether climate change was an existential threat or whether Mr. Trump would accept the election results should he lose, while Ms. Harris declined to say whether Mr. Biden would push to expand the number of justices on the Supreme Court.
But so long as the coronavirus is ravaging the White House and killing several hundred Americans each day, the campaign will almost certainly be a referendum on the Trump administration’s inability to control the pandemic, which Republicans have sought to downplay or ignore altogether for several months.
Mr. Pence’s effort to focus on other topics was undercut by the mere fact that the candidates and moderator were separated by plexiglass shields, seated more than 12 feet apart, and facing a crowd of masked audience members who faced expulsion if they removed their face coverings. The candidates on stage revealed negative test results earlier in the day.
While the audience was forced to wear face masks throughout, second lady Karen Pence removed her mask as she joined her husband on stage at the end of the debate.
Though the night was about Mr. Pence and Ms. Harris, the men at the top of the ticket also made their presence known.
Mr. Trump released a video just three hours before the debate calling his diagnosis “a blessing in disguise” because it shed light on an experimental antibody combination that he credited for his improved condition – though neither he nor his doctors have a way of knowing whether the drug had that effect.
He tweeted several times during the debate, offering this assessment at one point: “Mike Pence is doing GREAT! She is a gaffe machine.”
Mr. Biden, too, kept a stream of tweets going; he posted his plans for confronting the virus, shared clips from the debate exchanges and praised Ms. Harris, who he said “is showing the American people why I chose her as my running mate.”
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This story was reported by The Associated Press. AP writer Steven Peoples reported from New York and Jill Colvin reported from Washington.
Editor’s note: As a public service, the Monitor has removed the paywall for all our coronavirus coverage. It’s free.


csmonitor--2020-10-09--Setting ‘good fires’ to reduce the West’s wildfire risk

Prescribed fire advocates regard the West ’ s season of infernos as a chance to reset its approach .
“ The wildfires have done the convincing for us , ” says Sasha Berleman , a fire ecologist who runs a prescribed burn training program based in the San Francisco Bay Area .
“ Everyone is in agreement now – we need more prescribed fire.
” Each year , Florida sets fires to treat more than 2 million acres , the most of any state .
California , by contrast , burns only about 125,000 acres a year , despite having @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , by one Stanford University estimate .
Mr. Hiers emphasizes a different approach : prescribed burning , which involves setting fires on public or private lands under controlled conditions .
The process targets brush , grasses , and other accumulated vegetation , along with dead and downed trees , to improve ecosystem health and reduce the fuels that power wildfires .
Smoke from the recent explosion of wildfires in California , Oregon , and Washington drifted as far as the East Coast .
In the view of Kevin Hiers , a wildland fire @ @ @ @ @ @ @ clear proof of the West ’ s failed fire and forest management policies .
“ Until we break out of the suppression-first mentality , things will stay the same , ” he says .
The wildfires burning across the American West for the past two months have scorched millions of acres of land and scarred the region ’ s collective psyche .
As residents wait for the ashen air and ambient dread to lift , the devastation from Southern California to northern Washington has surpassed that of even the “ Big Blowup ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ – marked by orange skies and lung-stinging smoke , emergency warnings and mass evacuations – have burdened people with acute fire fatigue .
Or most people .
As flames incinerate wide swaths of landscape , Jeremy Bailey suggests that the West needs more fire .
“ When I wake up , I ’ m not thinking about where to put fire out .
I ’ m thinking about where I can put fire on the ground , ” says Mr. Bailey , director of the Nature Conservancy ’ s prescribed fire training program @ @ @ @ @ @ @ public or private lands under controlled conditions .
The process targets brush , grasses , and other accumulated vegetation , along with dead and downed trees , to improve ecosystem health and reduce the fuels that power wildfires .
“ Every day is a burn day , ” says Mr. Bailey , a former longtime wildland firefighter who now teaches the practice of applying “ good fire ” to the land .
“ We just have to be smart about it.
” He and fellow prescribed fire advocates regard this season of infernos @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s approach to fire and forest management , with broad use of controlled burns to lower the region ’ s extreme wildfire risk and nurture resilient natural lands .
The prevailing strategy for managing wildfires emerged after the Big Blowup more than a century ago , when ferocious winds propelled fires across Washington , Idaho , and Montana .
Three million acres burned as entire towns fell to the flames and at least 85 people died .
In the aftermath , the U.S. Forest Service , founded five years earlier , adopted @ @ @ @ @ @ @ extinguish most fires as quickly as possible to protect lives , property , and timber .
The model ignored the long-term potential for overgrowth to feed ever bigger wildfires and inhibit new vegetation .
Fast forward to 2020 .
Federal and state fire agencies in the West continue to emphasize suppression over prescribed burning , tree thinning , brush clearing , and other “ treatments ” for wildfire fuels .
The imbalance has wrought forests clogged with trees and understory primed to burn and susceptible to disease as climate change creates warmer , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ increased the number , size , and intensity of wildfires .
The problem appears most acute in California , where a prolonged drought and bark beetle infestation have killed an estimated 150 million trees , providing a copious supply of kindling .
This year ’ s wildfires have torched more than 4 million acres , and include five of the six largest blazes in state history and the first to top 1 million acres .
The scale of destruction from natural fires contrasts with California ’ s limited use of controlled burning .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ to treat about 125,000 acres a year – or 6 % of Florida ’ s annual total of more than 2 million acres , the most of any state .
The disparity arises , in part , from differences in climate , weather patterns , precipitation , and terrain between the two states .
But Florida ’ s embrace of prescribed burning also traces to a deeper public understanding of the benefits of fire on the landscape , a communal awareness that Mr. Bailey and other advocates seek to cultivate in the West @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of public agencies , communities , nonprofit groups , and private landholders – ranchers , Native American tribes , everyday homeowners – that can work to heal the land after a century of fire suppression .
“ We ’ re trying to encourage a cultural shift in our relationship with wildfire , ” says Sasha Berleman , a fire ecologist who runs a prescribed burn training program based in the San Francisco Bay Area .
“ Fire isn ’ t going away , so let ’ s change how we ’ re living @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s explosion of wildfires drifted as far as the East Coast .
In the view of Kevin Hiers , a wildland fire scientist , the haze offered clear proof of failed fire and forest management policies .
“ Until we break out of the suppression-first mentality , things will stay the same , ” he says .
Mr. Hiers leads a prescribed fire training program for Tall Timbers , a nonprofit research center in Tallahassee , Florida , that Outside Magazine has called “ the most evangelical prescribed-burning organization on the planet.
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ same , you know what the future looks like .
It ’ s the present.
” Controlled burns in woodlands can prevent wildfires from erupting into megafires – typically defined as a blaze that burns more than 100,000 acres – by clearing away undergrowth to deprive advancing flames of fuel .
The burned and unburned areas in a treated tract form a mosaic that preserves enough habitat for biodiversity and ample space for older , more fire-resistant trees to thrive .
“ If we only let fire burn in the most extreme conditions @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to have resilient forests because everything gets destroyed , ” Mr. Hiers says .
“ With prescribed burning , we ’ re putting fire on the ground under the best possible conditions so we can maintain forest health.
” Florida imposes a less stringent liability standard for damages that result from controlled burning compared with California , Oregon , and Washington .
Research shows that concerns over liability for an escaped fire deter public and private land managers in Western states from conducting burns .
Their reluctance persists even as prescribed fires seldom @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Center analyzed controlled burns on federal lands in 2012 and found that fewer than 1 % – 14 of 16,600 – overran containment lines .
Florida ’ s fire and forest officials promote prescribed fire as a practice that sustains ecosystems and serves the public interest .
“ People here have a different relationship with fire , ” Mr. Hiers says .
“ They don ’ t see it as only destructive.
” Florida offers liability protection to residents who complete a training course and follow state guidelines for setting prescribed fires – @ @ @ @ @ @ @ agencies save money and manpower .
In two recent surveys , public land managers in Western states identified a lack of funding and personnel as the most common obstacles to increasing prescribed fire efforts .
Their lament , beyond the reality of limited resources , illuminates an enduring bias .
California , Oregon , and Washington each rely on a single state agency to handle both fire response and forest management .
As climate change extends the wildfire season , draining budgets and firefighters alike , plans for applying “ good fire ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ loads rise ever higher , according to Sarah McCaffrey , who co-wrote both reports .
“ Most ecologists agree that if we don ’ t do more prescribed burning now , we ’ re going to face greater consequences down the line , ” says Ms. McCaffrey , a research social scientist with the U.S. Forest Service in Fort Collins , Colorado .
“ But when you have only one organization doing suppression and prescribed burning , bad fire seasons suck up all the resources.
” The 12 largest wildfires in California history @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that span , the fire season has grown by 75 days .
The state ’ s primary fire response and forest management agency , known as Cal Fire , spent $ 635 million on suppression in fiscal year 2018-19 , and its ranks include 9,700 full-time and seasonal firefighters .
The department assigns some 150 personnel to prescribed fire crews that burn 20,000 to 50,000 acres a year .
The small numbers appear smaller still in light of a Stanford University study that estimated the state would need to treat 20 million acres @ @ @ @ @ @ @ area , to lower the threat of destructive wildfires .
State officials announced an agreement with the Forest Service in August to treat 1 million acres of wildlands a year by 2025 through prescribed fire and other methods .
Yet this year ’ s cataclysm – 8,200 structures burned , 31 people dead – magnifies that public agencies will require the aid of residents to revitalize California ’ s ailing natural lands , asserts Stephen Pyne , the author of more than a dozen books on wildfire .
“ If you treat prescribed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ does , you can help people understand that fire isn ’ t somebody else ’ s responsibility , ” says Mr. Pyne , an emeritus professor of environmental history at Arizona State University .
“ It ’ s everybody ’ s responsibility.
” Ms. Berleman speaks the language of good fire as director of Fire Forward .
As part of the training program , an initiative of Audubon Canyon Ranch , a nonprofit conservation group north of San Francisco , she has conducted prescribed burns in and around Bay Area wine country .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ officials , homeowners , college students – a chance to hold a drip torch and learn the art and science of putting fire on the ground .
She lays out the science for each project in granular detail in an inch-thick document she gives to city and state fire officials to obtain permits .
She explains the burn ’ s purpose , scope , and length ; the ecological benefits of thinning vegetation ; and the safety measures to prevent flames from escaping .
The art in her work takes the form of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in restoring balance to forests and grasslands , and about an individual ’ s role as a caretaker of nature .
“ All of us have a lot of responsibility in how we steward our landscapes , ” Ms. Berleman says .
She has performed small-scale prescribed burns in Marin , Napa , and Sonoma counties , where wildfires in August were the area ’ s second direct hit since 2017 .
She relates that recent blazes – including the Camp Fire that killed 85 people in and around the town of Paradise @ @ @ @ @ @ @ residents to the potential of controlled burns .
“ In the last three years , we haven ’ t had to do much convincing , ” Ms. Berleman says .
“ The wildfires have done the convincing for us .
Everyone is in agreement now – we need more prescribed fire.
” The familiarity of Floridians with the practice enables fire officials and private landholders to organize burns year-round there without fear of complaints about smoke derailing a project , a common obstacle in the West .
Mr. Bailey , who holds prescribed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ wants to foster the same kind of awareness among its residents .
“ What you have in Florida is a culture of burning where , even if you ’ re not a burner , you don ’ t automatically call 911 when you see smoke because you know what ’ s going on , ” he says .
A trio of U.S. senators has proposed legislation to pump $ 300 million into prescribed burning initiatives at the federal , state , and local levels .
The funding could bring more prescribed burns to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ million residents call home , among them Bill Tripp .
A member of the Karuk Tribe , Mr. Tripp suggests that more freedom for Native Americans to apply good fire to ancestral lands would hold cultural resonance .
He works for the tribe ’ s Department of Natural Resources near California ’ s border with Oregon , where massive wildfires claimed 15 lives last month .
He has fought for decades with little success to persuade state and federal officials to grant approval to the tribe for cultural burns – burns that he @ @ @ @ @ @ @ last month .
“ What the fires this year show is the scale of the problem – with the overgrowth and all the fuels – is too big for any of the agencies to fix , ” he says .
“ The forests are covered in leaves and dead trees .
Let us and other tribes use fire to help the land .
”

Prescribed fire advocates regard the West’s season of infernos as a chance to reset its approach. “The wildfires have done the convincing for us,” says Sasha Berleman, a fire ecologist who runs a prescribed burn training program based in the San Francisco Bay Area. “Everyone is in agreement now – we need more prescribed fire.”
Each year, Florida sets fires to treat more than 2 million acres, the most of any state. California, by contrast, burns only about 125,000 acres a year, despite having 20 million acres in need of treatment, by one Stanford University estimate.
As the West deals with a season of infernos, Florida may offer lessons. Officials there see fire of the right kind as a friend – and enlist public support for prescribed burns that sustain ecosystems and enhance public safety.
Mr. Hiers emphasizes a different approach: prescribed burning, which involves setting fires on public or private lands under controlled conditions. The process targets brush, grasses, and other accumulated vegetation, along with dead and downed trees, to improve ecosystem health and reduce the fuels that power wildfires.
Smoke from the recent explosion of wildfires in California, Oregon, and Washington drifted as far as the East Coast. In the view of Kevin Hiers, a wildland fire scientist in Florida, the haze offered clear proof of the West’s failed fire and forest management policies. “Until we break out of the suppression-first mentality, things will stay the same,” he says.
The wildfires burning across the American West for the past two months have scorched millions of acres of land and scarred the region’s collective psyche. As residents wait for the ashen air and ambient dread to lift, the devastation from Southern California to northern Washington has surpassed that of even the “Big Blowup” of 1910.
The weeks of uncertainty – marked by orange skies and lung-stinging smoke, emergency warnings and mass evacuations – have burdened people with acute fire fatigue. Or most people. As flames incinerate wide swaths of landscape, Jeremy Bailey suggests that the West needs more fire.
That’s right: more.
Why We Wrote This As the West deals with a season of infernos, Florida may offer lessons. Officials there see fire of the right kind as a friend – and enlist public support for prescribed burns that sustain ecosystems and enhance public safety.
“When I wake up, I’m not thinking about where to put fire out. I’m thinking about where I can put fire on the ground,” says Mr. Bailey, director of the Nature Conservancy’s prescribed fire training program.
Prescribed burning involves setting fires on public or private lands under controlled conditions. The process targets brush, grasses, and other accumulated vegetation, along with dead and downed trees, to improve ecosystem health and reduce the fuels that power wildfires.
“Every day is a burn day,” says Mr. Bailey, a former longtime wildland firefighter who now teaches the practice of applying “good fire” to the land. “We just have to be smart about it.”
He and fellow prescribed fire advocates regard this season of infernos as a chance to reset the West’s approach to fire and forest management, with broad use of controlled burns to lower the region’s extreme wildfire risk and nurture resilient natural lands.
The prevailing strategy for managing wildfires emerged after the Big Blowup more than a century ago, when ferocious winds propelled fires across Washington, Idaho, and Montana. Three million acres burned as entire towns fell to the flames and at least 85 people died.
In the aftermath, the U.S. Forest Service, founded five years earlier, adopted an aggressive suppression policy, vowing to extinguish most fires as quickly as possible to protect lives, property, and timber. The model ignored the long-term potential for overgrowth to feed ever bigger wildfires and inhibit new vegetation.
Fast forward to 2020. Federal and state fire agencies in the West continue to emphasize suppression over prescribed burning, tree thinning, brush clearing, and other “treatments” for wildfire fuels. The imbalance has wrought forests clogged with trees and understory primed to burn and susceptible to disease as climate change creates warmer, drier conditions – an equation that has increased the number, size, and intensity of wildfires.
The problem appears most acute in California, where a prolonged drought and bark beetle infestation have killed an estimated 150 million trees, providing a copious supply of kindling. This year’s wildfires have torched more than 4 million acres, and include five of the six largest blazes in state history and the first to top 1 million acres.
The scale of destruction from natural fires contrasts with California’s limited use of controlled burning. Public and private land managers set fires to treat about 125,000 acres a year – or 6% of Florida’s annual total of more than 2 million acres, the most of any state.
Brian Melley/AP/File View caption Hide caption Firefighter Charles VeaVea (right) pours flame from a drip torch as his supervisor, Isaias Garcia, monitors a prescribed fire in Kings Canyon National Park in California, June 11, 2019. Prescribed burns are considered one of the best ways to prevent catastrophic destruction, but their use falls woefully short of goals in the West.
The disparity arises, in part, from differences in climate, weather patterns, precipitation, and terrain between the two states. But Florida’s embrace of prescribed burning also traces to a deeper public understanding of the benefits of fire on the landscape, a communal awareness that Mr. Bailey and other advocates seek to cultivate in the West. They envision a prescribed fire alliance of public agencies, communities, nonprofit groups, and private landholders – ranchers, Native American tribes, everyday homeowners – that can work to heal the land after a century of fire suppression.
“We’re trying to encourage a cultural shift in our relationship with wildfire,” says Sasha Berleman, a fire ecologist who runs a prescribed burn training program based in the San Francisco Bay Area. “Fire isn’t going away, so let’s change how we’re living with it.”
“It’s everybody’s responsibility”
Smoke from the West’s explosion of wildfires drifted as far as the East Coast. In the view of Kevin Hiers, a wildland fire scientist, the haze offered clear proof of failed fire and forest management policies.
“Until we break out of the suppression-first mentality, things will stay the same,” he says. Mr. Hiers leads a prescribed fire training program for Tall Timbers, a nonprofit research center in Tallahassee, Florida, that Outside Magazine has called “the most evangelical prescribed-burning organization on the planet.” “And if things stay the same, you know what the future looks like. It’s the present.”
Controlled burns in woodlands can prevent wildfires from erupting into megafires – typically defined as a blaze that burns more than 100,000 acres – by clearing away undergrowth to deprive advancing flames of fuel. The burned and unburned areas in a treated tract form a mosaic that preserves enough habitat for biodiversity and ample space for older, more fire-resistant trees to thrive.
“If we only let fire burn in the most extreme conditions, then we’re not going to have resilient forests because everything gets destroyed,” Mr. Hiers says. “With prescribed burning, we’re putting fire on the ground under the best possible conditions so we can maintain forest health.”
Florida imposes a less stringent liability standard for damages that result from controlled burning compared with California, Oregon, and Washington. Research shows that concerns over liability for an escaped fire deter public and private land managers in Western states from conducting burns.
Their reluctance persists even as prescribed fires seldom break away. The National Interagency Fire Center analyzed controlled burns on federal lands in 2012 and found that fewer than 1% – 14 of 16,600 – overran containment lines.
Florida’s fire and forest officials promote prescribed fire as a practice that sustains ecosystems and serves the public interest. “People here have a different relationship with fire,” Mr. Hiers says. “They don’t see it as only destructive.”
Florida offers liability protection to residents who complete a training course and follow state guidelines for setting prescribed fires – and by enlisting their help, state agencies save money and manpower. In two recent surveys, public land managers in Western states identified a lack of funding and personnel as the most common obstacles to increasing prescribed fire efforts.
Their lament, beyond the reality of limited resources, illuminates an enduring bias. California, Oregon, and Washington each rely on a single state agency to handle both fire response and forest management. As climate change extends the wildfire season, draining budgets and firefighters alike, plans for applying “good fire” drop down the priority list while fuel loads rise ever higher, according to Sarah McCaffrey, who co-wrote both reports.
“Most ecologists agree that if we don’t do more prescribed burning now, we’re going to face greater consequences down the line,” says Ms. McCaffrey, a research social scientist with the U.S. Forest Service in Fort Collins, Colorado. “But when you have only one organization doing suppression and prescribed burning, bad fire seasons suck up all the resources.”
The 12 largest wildfires in California history have occurred since 2000, and during that span, the fire season has grown by 75 days. The state’s primary fire response and forest management agency, known as Cal Fire, spent $635 million on suppression in fiscal year 2018-19, and its ranks include 9,700 full-time and seasonal firefighters.
The department assigns some 150 personnel to prescribed fire crews that burn 20,000 to 50,000 acres a year. The small numbers appear smaller still in light of a Stanford University study that estimated the state would need to treat 20 million acres, or almost one-fifth of its land area, to lower the threat of destructive wildfires.
State officials announced an agreement with the Forest Service in August to treat 1 million acres of wildlands a year by 2025 through prescribed fire and other methods. Yet this year’s cataclysm – 8,200 structures burned, 31 people dead – magnifies that public agencies will require the aid of residents to revitalize California’s ailing natural lands, asserts Stephen Pyne, the author of more than a dozen books on wildfire.
Noah Berger/AP/File View caption Hide caption A home burns as the Camp Fire rages through Paradise, California, on Nov. 8, 2018. Some experts say blazes like this one (which killed 85 people) have awakened public officials and residents to the potential use of controlled burns to reduce fire risks.
“If you treat prescribed fire like a public service like Florida does, you can help people understand that fire isn’t somebody else’s responsibility,” says Mr. Pyne, an emeritus professor of environmental history at Arizona State University. “It’s everybody’s responsibility.”
Restoring balance
Ms. Berleman speaks the language of good fire as director of Fire Forward. As part of the training program, an initiative of Audubon Canyon Ranch, a nonprofit conservation group north of San Francisco, she has conducted prescribed burns in and around Bay Area wine country. The sessions offer participants – local park officials, homeowners, college students – a chance to hold a drip torch and learn the art and science of putting fire on the ground.
She lays out the science for each project in granular detail in an inch-thick document she gives to city and state fire officials to obtain permits. She explains the burn’s purpose, scope, and length; the ecological benefits of thinning vegetation; and the safety measures to prevent flames from escaping.
The art in her work takes the form of teaching participants about fire’s role in restoring balance to forests and grasslands, and about an individual’s role as a caretaker of nature.
“All of us have a lot of responsibility in how we steward our landscapes,” Ms. Berleman says. She has performed small-scale prescribed burns in Marin, Napa, and Sonoma counties, where wildfires in August were the area’s second direct hit since 2017. She relates that recent blazes – including the Camp Fire that killed 85 people in and around the town of Paradise in 2018 – awakened public officials and residents to the potential of controlled burns.
“In the last three years, we haven’t had to do much convincing,” Ms. Berleman says. “The wildfires have done the convincing for us. Everyone is in agreement now – we need more prescribed fire.”
The familiarity of Floridians with the practice enables fire officials and private landholders to organize burns year-round there without fear of complaints about smoke derailing a project, a common obstacle in the West. Mr. Bailey, who holds prescribed fire training sessions across Western states, wants to foster the same kind of awareness among its residents.
“What you have in Florida is a culture of burning where, even if you’re not a burner, you don’t automatically call 911 when you see smoke because you know what’s going on,” he says.
A trio of U.S. senators has proposed legislation to pump $300 million into prescribed burning initiatives at the federal, state, and local levels. The funding could bring more prescribed burns to the fire-prone areas of California that 11 million residents call home, among them Bill Tripp.
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A member of the Karuk Tribe, Mr. Tripp suggests that more freedom for Native Americans to apply good fire to ancestral lands would hold cultural resonance. He works for the tribe’s Department of Natural Resources near California’s border with Oregon, where massive wildfires claimed 15 lives last month. He has fought for decades with little success to persuade state and federal officials to grant approval to the tribe for cultural burns – burns that he asserts would have saved lives and homes last month.
“What the fires this year show is the scale of the problem – with the overgrowth and all the fuels – is too big for any of the agencies to fix,” he says. “The forests are covered in leaves and dead trees. Let us and other tribes use fire to help the land.”