All the while they champion the method of prescribed burns across the country.
Here is a fact. Wood (trees) stores carbon after it takes it out of the air. Then, it releases that carbon after either dying and rotting, or by burning. If the forest is left to stagnate and grow old, the old growth does NOTHING to scrub the air since older forests are at the end of the life cycle. Younger healthy forests take tons of carbon out of the air per acre each year and add oxygen as a replacement.
Burning wood is a zero end game pollutent since the wood releases either way-by dying and rotting or by burning.
Forest fire on the other hand, is one of the most polution emitting acts in the world. The level of lead and mercury released by these fires, or prescribed burns, is one the the largest health hazards to humans on the planet. One of the others is volcanism and even mega city dwelling.
We have a place here called Hoosier Prairie where they do controlled burns to keep it like the “original” prairie. Meanwhile we can’t burn leaves.