Illustration by Cody Angell

Citizens of Pima County: You have failed in protecting your Coronado National Forest.

Most of the state was lucky and the forests were closed in the nick of time. Yet, Smokey Bear ads are going up in flames and taxpayers are footing the bill of the too-close-for-comfort Bullock forest fire.

Angry fingers immediately pointed to the Forest Service. It was their fault ÷ they were the ones after all who did not close the forests in time.

Well my dear camping-with-a-fire, tossing-cigarettes-from-car-windows, chain-sawing friends, the Forest Service cannot be held accountable for these horrendous forest fires. Sure, you could blame them for other things like marketing our natural and wild places through mining, ranching and timber sales, but not this. They did not start the fires. Rather, it was one of your own.

This non-monarchical country was built on the belief that we had to do it together. And it has been the people of America who have made this nation great. The brown and green forest service signs that declare, ãProtect YOUR national forestsä are not some deep, twisted philosophical joke. It is our responsibility to be a proper steward of our natural and inherited environment.

Although the timing is a little bad, now is an appropriate opportunity to admire the work of our neighbors up north. Grass-roots volunteers in the Sedona area are donating their time to protecting their dry and shriveled forests. Dozens of regular people have joined efforts to keep fellow citizens out of the park. With hand-held two-way radios, Sedona maps, lists of the latest forest closures and folding chairs, together they man the entrance roads, picnic areas and trails that lead into the closed areas, and they tattle to the local sheriffs and rangers. Good for them.

These individuals feel a personal pledge to keeping the forests out of harmâs way, out of the hands of irresponsible Americans.

The cost of our reckless fire has now surpassed $10 million and the blaze is expected to burn until sufficient rain falls. With no clouds in sight, many taxpayer-rights and environmental groups have frowned upon the Forest Serviceâs maintenance of our forests.

ãThroughout the Western U.S., weâre dealing with 75 or 80 years of fire management policy that dealt with putting fire out,ä noted Doug Ruppel, manager of Babocomari Ranch near Sonoita in the Arizona Daily Star. While the notion of wildfires as unhealthy ailments of forests has been burnt from our minds, many critics advocate more controlled or ãprescribed burnsä that would clear out areas of high fuel buildup.

ãWe either deal with it with prescribed burns or Mother Nature will care of it with some blow-up fire,ä Ruppel added.

And the Santa Catalina Mountains did just that.

This past Monday, reports stated that Mount Lemmon residents could be returning soon. But, many are terrified of what they might find. Although the fire has not touched the 715 buildings, which are worth $67 million according to Pima County Assessorâs Office records, a nearby charred forest might diminish their property values. And rightfully so. Thatâs what happens when you build in a forest

ãIf all of Mount Lemmon goes up in smoke, who wants to go up and stay in the middle of gray ash and black sticks?ä said Fran Zimmerman of Mount Lemmon Realty and Neil Bloomfield of Summit Realty to a Star reporter. Although many local families have their livelihoods invested on the mountain, we cannot let our forests become as unhealthy as they were before the blaze.

It is up to every American to protect their national forests. We must encourage more prescribed burns. We must play responsibly outdoors.

We must take an active role in clearing out natural fuel.

We must volunteer our time to help Forest Service personnel. We must not cry when a house in the middle of the forest burns down.

Before the fire ignited, the Star ran a story about how two fire horns were installed at the edges of Summerhaven. At the time, the fire district had planned on sounding these horns at noon on July 4 not only to test them, but also to familiarize nearby residents of the sound.

Yet, this Independence Day, things will be different atop our beloved mountain. If the horns do sound, let it be a reminder that as Americans, we all are on duty to protect our forest environments.

Saving our wild and natural places is not a job, but a way of life.