The first article I found “Looking into the Past” was about how the forest management practices now and in the past have changed how forests are structured now and have even changed the species itself, leading them vulnerable to high intensity wildfires. It further brings up the question on how to make trees more specifically the ponderosa pine and douglas fir trees to be more resilient to fires. The author quotes another article titled  where they sampled trees from the colorado front range to see if there were any changes . They found that “Compared to 1860, the team found present-day montane forests had significant increases in tree stand density, more Douglas-fir trees, and lower average tree diameters.”, which means that present-day montane forests are more crowded, there is less diversity in species, and the trees are smaller as a result.

Battaglia, Mike A. “Looking into the Past: How Reconstructing Historical Forest Conditions Can Help Future Restoration Efforts: Rocky Mountain Research Station.”, 1 Jan 1970,https://www.fs.usda.gov/rmrs/documents-and-media/looking-past-how-reconstructing-historical-forest-conditions-can-help-future-0. 

The second article I found was about how a proposed effort to restore a large amount of Southern New Mexico forests is getting backlash from environmentalists about concerns about the restoration plan. The restoration project would cover over 218 square miles in southern New Mexico. Other Forest land managers are proceeding with similar projects to confront the effects of climate change and slow the pace of wildfires. The article mentions the restoration projects in the Jemez mountains and in Arizona. Foresters in Sacramento Mountains reported that over the last decade there have been a big die off of ponderosa pine, douglas fir, and pinon trees. Environmentalist have said that the restoration plans area step in the right direction, but they concerns with how the roads for the restoration work will affect the old trees, soil disturbance and owl habitat. 

Montoya Bryan, Susan. “New Mexico Forest Restoration Faces Challenge.” Albuquerque Journal, 26 May 2019, https://www.abqjournal.com/1315585/new-mexico-forest-restoration-faces-challenge.html.

The last source of research I found was a video about different strategies on how to restore a forest, they used the following controlled, island, and plantation. A controlled strategy they plant no trees and let the forest regenerate on their own. An island strategy is when they plant trees in different size patches of the project area and stimulate a more natural response. And a plantation strategy where they planted the whole area with trees. They started this project over a decade ago and the results that they got was that the plantation and island strategies worked pretty well and they plan to continue the project as long as they can.

“Restoring tropical forest by planting tree islands” YouTube,uploaded by Karen Hall, 8 October 2018,https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QPZIIMZrIqQ

 The first article I read was about the Cerro Paleto fire that started on April 22, 2022 in the Jemez Mountains. The article informed that the fire had already burned through more than 22,000 acres since it started, for most locals the fire fast approaching their homes was a grim repeat of the devastating 2001 Las Conchas fire that charred over 150,000 of acres. The Superintendent of the Valles Caldera National Preserve said that the jemez fire is burning through the charred land that burned just a decade ago. The cerro paleto fire could set a precedent for other forests prone to wildfires in the U.S. Responders are learning ways to beat the flames in an area that has already been burned and changed. The Los Alamos fire chief urged locals to make a safety checklist and to plan in case of an emergency evacuation. Most of the concern on monday was to protect a patch of old growth trees that were in danger of igniting. Christopher Chavez Tribal Historic Prevention Officer for the pueblo of Santo Domingo stated that native communities have adapted to life in the forest over generations. He asks “Why can't we have the animals feed on the vegetation? Why can't we collect firewood and cut down trees for the Pueblo?”. He also added that they have to sneak in to pray. Chaves also says “Tribal members are watching the fire’s trajectory — and they’re hurting. First they lost access to ancestral territory and sacred spaces. Now they’re seeing that same inheritance succumb to fires that may have been prevented.”

Margaret Wright, Source New Mexico May 4. “Cerro Pelado Fire a Grim Reprise, Tearing through the Las Conchas Burn Scar.” Source New Mexico, 4 May 2022, https://sourcenm.com/2022/05/04/cerro-pelado-fire-a-grim-reprise-tearing-through-the-las-conchas-burn-scar/.