Boy Scouts of America

Hazard Trees

SUMMARY

According to the U.S. Forest Service, our nation’s forests are experiencing declining health conditions. Broken tops, widow-makers (broken or hanging limbs), and root rot in many tree species along with insect infestations, lightning, wind events, drought, and abundant moisture have led to the creation of abnormally high numbers of “hazard trees.” Hazard trees include dead trees, live trees with dead parts, and live trees that are unstable due to defects and are within striking distance of people or property.

These hazard trees don’t just affect our Scouting family during storms. They can fall—and have fallen—at unpredictable times, even when weather conditions are favorable.

GENERAL INFORMATION

Here are some tips to prevent a hazard tree from affecting your event:

  • Assess your site. Look up, look down, and look all around when parking a vehicle, hiking on the trail, or selecting a campsite.
  • Avoid campsites with hazard trees. Dead trees and dead limbs may fall at any time. Trees without needles, bark, or limbs may indicate structural defects.
  • If a campsite does have hazard trees but must be used, be sure that all tents, chairs, hammocks, and work areas are outside the failure zone, or fall radius, of those trees. The fall radius on flat ground is 1½ times the height of the tree or tree part that could fail. Sloping ground could increase the danger zone.
  • Don’t use dead trees, hazard trees, or other unstable objects to support tents, canopies, or hammocks.
  • Check the environment constantly for changes, including the weather, as storms can increase the likelihood of trees or parts of trees falling.
  • Communicate about hazard trees to others, such as units, crews, or camp authorities.

RESOURCES

Bray Barnes

Director, Global Security Innovative
Strategies

Bray Barnes is a recipient of the Distinguished Eagle Scout Award, Silver
Beaver, Silver Antelope, Silver Buffalo, and Learning for Life Distinguished
Service Award. He received the Messengers of Peace Hero award from
the royal family of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and he’s a life member of
the 101st Airborne Association and Vietnam Veterans Association. Barnes
serves as a senior fellow for the Global Federation of Competitiveness
Councils, a nonpartisan network of corporate CEOs, university presidents, and
national laboratory directors. He has also served as a senior executive for the
U.S. Department of Homeland Security, leading the first-responder program
and has two U.S. presidential appointments

David Alexander

Managing Member Calje

David Alexander is a Baden-Powell Fellow, Summit Bechtel Reserve philanthropist, and recipient of the Silver Buffalo and Distinguished Eagle Scout Award. He is the founder of Caljet, one of the largest independent motor fuels terminals in the U.S. He has served the Arizona Petroleum Marketers Association, Teen Lifeline, and American Heart Association. A triathlete who has completed hundreds of races, Alexander has also mentored the women’s triathlon team at Arizona State University.

Glenn Adams

President, CEO & Managing Director
Stonetex Oil Corp.

Glenn Adams is a recipient of the Silver Beaver, Silver Antelope, Silver Buffalo, and Distinguished Eagle Scout Award. He is the former president of the National Eagle Scout Association and established the Glenn A. and Melinda W. Adams National Eagle Scout Service Project of the Year Award. He has more than 40 years of experience in the oil, gas, and energy fields, including serving as a president, owner, and CEO. Adams has also received multiple service awards from the Texas Alliance of Energy Producers.