fire is definitely a force to fear when living near wooded areas.
especially large wooded areas.

lumber companies cry because they've lost out on timber income but it is
a natural occurrence and it's destruction cannot be compared to that
of large scale logging practices. forests affected by fire regenerate
back into healthy forests much quicker, whereas clear cut forests don't.

some species of trees such as red pine do better when a forest fire passes
through. it causes the seeds to be released from their cones so that a new
generation of trees can propagate.

putting out forest fires for years results in a thick layer of leaves, needles,
twigs, and other dead biomass to build up. so with continuous fire suppression,
this layer of dead organic matter grows. add hot dry spells and lightning to the
mix then you have the conditions for fire to spread very quickly and burn very hot
and hard to extinguish. just see how long the Aussie fires will burn before they
are fully extinguished.

so what is the solution? do you put out forest fires or let them burn out naturally?