Jon, if there is all that dry scrub brush in April couldn't controlled burns help prevent this reoccurring? About all of Texas I've seen outside a football stadium looked very dry.
There's a lot of energy in all that brush, might be convertable into electricity.
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I'll believe corporations are persons when Texas executes one.: LBJ's Ghost
Yeah the brush has its potential. The Juniper is used for oil, they shred it and press it to collect the oil for cosmetics and other things. Then they use the fiber and combine it with plastic to make imitation boards that don't weather or rot. Its kind of a new product, and collection is very labor intensive. The Mesquite in the pasture is great for BBQ's. Some company is using Mesquite to make ethanol, not sure how that is going. As far as the rest of the stuff out there, control burns are a valuable tool, but most people can't or won't do them. They limit pasture usage for a year or two, which is good, but most ranchers can't afford not to use the land for grazing that long. Over grazing is a major issue out here, so lots of brush, little grass. There are some grasses that can be grown and harvested then used in power plants for fuel. The government does usually offer a brush control subsidy, they pay a portion of the cost to clear brush. Tractors and operators usually run about $95 an hour, fuel cost is killing most people out here. The subsidy usually only covers about 50% of the cost, ranching doesn't pay enough for much brush control. I personally do brush control, no government help, with tractors and chemical means on my ranches. I plan on attending a burn school this winter at the Texas A&M Experiment Station, where they teach burn schools and burning impacts on range land, pretty cool stuff. I don't know if that answers your question or I just got on a soap box and rambled. LOL
I plan on attending a burn school this winter at the Texas A&M Experiment Station, where they teach burn schools and burning impacts on range land, pretty cool stuff. I don't know if that answers your question or I just got on a soap box and rambled. LOL
That's probably the most complete all encompassing answer I've received in any forum in 10 years. I thank you Sir and thank you also for your personal efforts on your ranches.
Reading over the fire locations I saw "pipeline" mentioned at least twice and wondered if it isn't in the interests of oil companies to subsidize some of this brush containment?
Here in Oregon I've heard the juniper is sucking parts of the land bone dry. Is that a problem for you too?
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I'll believe corporations are persons when Texas executes one.: LBJ's Ghost
Reading over the fire locations I saw "pipeline" mentioned at least twice and wondered if it isn't in the interests of oil companies to subsidize some of this brush containment?
Most pipelines and power lines are contracted to be cleared by an outside company. We have a transmission line that runs across our property that is cleared every few years. The bad about this is they clear the brush but do not kill the offending brush. Mesquite is one plant that either has to be dug up or treated chemically. Just cutting it off at the ground pisses it off, so I guess its job security for them to just come in and use a hydro axe to clear it out.
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Here in Oregon I've heard the juniper is sucking parts of the land bone dry. Is that a problem for you too?
Juniper here is a big problem, but not the biggest we have. We have two kinds of Juniper here, red and blue. Basically the same but they grow different and are killed in different ways. Blues can be cut off, taking all the green will kill it. Reds take poison, just cutting them off will not do it, they come back unless stump sprayed. Either can be grubbed with a tractor and if you get the root bowl then it will kill it too. I went to a brush control class a year ago and one of the Doctors speaking stated studies are showing juniper is not as much a water hog as once thought, that didn't get much acceptance from the seasoned ranchers who swear juniper is "the" water hog. More of an issue for use in West Texas is mesquite. This is a mother to get rid of and if you cleared it all out of your pasture you have a 10 year window before it will start to come back. It is spread from mesquite beans via birds or livestock. Mesquite sucks the moisture from the ground and has been shown to lower the water tables. Recent studies have shown water sources return when massive brush control is applied, pretty cool to see creeks flow again once the mesquite is removed. Our average rainfall is about 16 to 20 inches a year, so the more we do the more we get to keep.
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