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Shrubphobia
There are a number of individuals who appear to have difficulty enjoying the beauty and dynamic nature of the chaparral...especially old-growth chaparral.
They frequently use pejorative descriptions of shrubland ecosystems in newspaper editorials, casual conversations and even during professional wildfire conferences. Managed forests appear to be their favored environments and they see chaparral as a threat. They refer to shrubs and old-growth chaparral as "trash," or "brush" (emphasized with a deep, guttural sound) in need of immediate elimination. Rather than recognizing chaparral as a viable ecosystem, they think of it as a "scrub infested" savanna. Some appear to have vested interests in sending forth chipping machines to grind up large tracts of backcountry wilderness to provide fuel for power generators (yes, this is a serious proposal) while others are just honestly ignorant.
Whatever the cause, allowing brushphobia to influence public policy has very real and serious implications. It justifies damaging one of California's most valuable natural resources and the state's most characteristic ecosystem.
Suggested treatment: Leave the office, take a walk into the chaparral with a few children...they have the uncanny knack for helping adults rediscover their natural (and often buried) appreciation for nature.
A word about the word "brush"
Words have the power to create images that do not reflect reality. They can convey hidden meanings that are intended to demean or belittle what they are supposedly describing. "Brush" is one such word. By using the word "brush" in context with native shrubland ecosystems or fire risk reduction, we are delivering the wrong message, a message that needs to be corrected.
Shrubland ecosystems are valuable resources, not "brush." Fire risk is not just about "brush" but about the entire fire environment.
"Brush" is a pejorative slang term from the 1800's, a period in which a large percentage of residents in the West lived or worked on farms and ranches. They saw native vegetation as "weeds" in need of removal so cattle could graze and trees could be cut. Our view of the natural world has changed significantly since those days. As we have begun to see National Forests as preserves for recreation rather than lumber yards, the reference to these protected wildlands as being filled with brush is no longer relevant. Shrublands not only provide us places to enjoy nature, but they also create important habitat for a multitude of native species that we have now come to appreciate.
In context with fire risk, it is important to remember the obvious: fires burn fuel. Fuel needs to be seen as anything that burns: houses, fences, wood stacks, and vegetation. At the present moment the primary focus is not on fuel, but on brush, which translates to mean native plant communities, not Mexican fan palms, not acacia, or other highly flammable plants the homeowner may have purchased at the nursery. By focusing on brush, the complete fire risk equation is ignored. This is why people are so often confused when their homes burn down despite the fact that they have "cleared the brush." What hasn’t been properly communicated is that it's the fuel, not the brush that needs to be addressed. Our current language emphasizing brush leads homeowners near wildland areas to ignore other fire risks around their homes (wooden roofing, improperly designed attic vents, yard furniture) because wildfire is unfortunately seen as only as a wildland vegetation problem.
How we chose words communicates a lot. This is the reason most of us no longer find demeaning slurs acceptable and have changed our language to reflect greater equality. How we see the world is defined by what we call it. Equality doesn't start with words, but it takes a lot longer to obtain it if the words that once reflected inequality and misunderstanding continue to be used.
Brush should no longer be part of our vocabulary because it communicates the wrong message. It demonizes native shrublands and takes the focus of fire risk reduction away from fuel and directs it toward nature. It is time we begin thinking about adapting to the natural environment instead of pretending we can force it to adapt to us. Accurately describing nature for what it really is would be an excellent way to help facilitate this process.
Groups of trees are called forests. Wide expanses of grass are called grasslands. Plant communities composed of shrubs should be called by their proper name as well. Chaparral, coastal sage, and even desert scrub are much more useful terms than the pejorative “brush."
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