How beetle-kill pine is fueling both the lumber industry and the southwest wildfire season

2013-07-05T17:49:00-04:00

As the dry, beetle-kill pine blew up in the West Fork fires, which have charred more than 110,000 acres, firefighters used helicopters and air tankers to divert the fire from valuable resources and dug a "dozer line" to defend the town of South Fork. In the Rio Grande National Forest, where rugged terrain presents dangerous conditions for ground crews, firefighters have battled the flames judiciously, on their own terms.

As the West Fork fires rage on in southwestern Colorado, local firefighters have come to understand the dangers involved with fighting fires in areas plagued with beetle-kill trees. Typically, after beetles attack and kill these trees, the dry needles become an ignition source. The real danger, however, comes decades after the tree has died when the rotted tree finally falls to the ground. And yet this fallen lumber has proven to be a sustainable choice for interior architecture, as no live trees need to be harvested.

The use of beetle-kill pine has thus become a popular aesthetic choice utilized for flooring, paneling, or siding applications within modern residences, businesses, and restaurants in recent years. The blue stained hue of the wood that has allured many architects and interior designers alike is caused not by the beetles themselves, but from the fungus that the beetles carry with them. Proper, a newly conceived restaurant located in Tucson, Arizona, chose to incorpo...

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How beetle-kill pine is fueling both the lumber industry and the southwest wildfire season