Why our fears are justified...

These have not burned...yet. They have been killed by pine beetles. As you can see, it is an enormous problem. In fact, in my lifetime, the forest will never be the same. With one lightning strike in just the wrong place, this firewood will all go up in smoke. There are literally millions of acres in NW Colorado that are like this. It is scary. Many brilliant people have been scheming a way to stop these beetles and there is no solution. The things that kill the beetle also kill many other things. Not good. There are no answers.
PS: This shot is straight from the camera. I did nothing to the color at all.
More about the pine beetle issues:
www.ext.colostate.edu/pubs/insect/05528.html