The Nature Conservancy in Oklahoma - Oklahoma Chapter

Perhaps the greatest threat to the productivity of Oklahoma's native landscapes and wildlife is the spread of eastern redcedar. Driving westward across Oklahoma, it doesn't take long to notice the overpopulation of cedar saplings dotting our wide-open rangelands. In some cases, evidence of cedar infestation has left complete eastern redcedar forests. In 1950, researchers at the Natural Resources Conservation Service concluded that eastern redcedars occupied 1.5 million acres in Oklahoma. Updated surveys taken in 1985 and 1994, showed cedars had expanded in coverage an alarming 79 percent in just nine years. Today the estimate of impact by this invasive plant reaches beyond 9 million acres of rangeland and forestland in our state. This exponential trend is consuming more than 760 acres of Oklahoma every day, and the effect is disastrous.

Without the restraint brought about by fire, redcedar invasions create a forest canopy which out-competes native vegetation. The resulting bare soils and increased erosion severely impacts native plant and animal communities and escalates soil erosion. Redcedar's extensive root system has also been labeled "water wasters" by experts and could potentially reduce the recharge capacity of Oklahoma's water aquifers as well.

To sustain the health and productivity of Oklahoma's rangeland, the Conservancy suggests a combination of prescribed burning and mechanical removal of this killer threat to Oklahoma's lands. The Conservancy also suggests:

Establishing Prescribed Burning Coops. Putting people and equipment together to reintroduce fire onto Oklahoma's landscapes can be an efficient management strategy.
Modifying Oklahoma's prescribed burn laws to encourage the use of prescribed burn practices on rangelands. Many landowners are not comfortable with the current liability status placed on them by state law, and so they avoid using this cost-effective rangeland management tool.
Educating land owners and managers about the problems associated with eastern redcedar infestation. Many Oklahomans have adopted the "all trees are good" mindset, which may have lead to the acceptance of cedars in areas where they should not naturally occur.