College builds new forest for education
CEDAR CITY, Utah -- Southern Utah University has a new outdoor classroom.
The school and the state are combining to create a demonstration forest where students, natural resources professionals and the public can learn about forest care.
The plan includes more than 2,000 acres of SUU property, which the school purchased in the 1940s.
"We have been wanting to implement a demonstration forest for a number of years. It has been a long-term goal for us," said Patrick Moore, a forester with the Division of Forestry, Fire and State Lands.
SUU originally bought the land to assist with sheep herding and academic use, but there has been little agricultural research in the area.
SUU President Michael T. Benson told The Spectrum that research and forestry programs at Northern Arizona University and Utah State University have expressed an interest in learning more about the demonstration forest.
The demonstration area will show how to maintain or revitalize damaged forests to a natural state through actions such as small-scale burning and logging.
State forester Dick Buehler said the state isn't able to burn forests to keep them healthy because of development in the mountains.
Without fire, undergrowth and other vegetation are able to build up over time, which can quickly lead to a raging fire.
"As I travel around the state, you can see it here," Buehler said. "Just have to drive up on Cedar Mountain and see the results of what has happened with primary lack of fires."
