Critical reading – forest fires and old-growth stands The passage explains crown fires leap across treetops in thickets, but in old-growth forests, shade suppresses saplings and lower branches are too high to ignite. What statement is best supported?

Introduction / Context:
The paragraph contrasts conditions that enable crown fires (dense young growth) with structural features of old-growth stands (high canopies, shade that suppresses understory) that impede treetop spread.

Given Data / Assumptions:

• Crown fires are devastating when they jump treetop to treetop.
• Old-growth shade prevents thickets of small trees.
• Lower branches in mature trees are too high to catch flames easily.

Concept / Approach:
Select the option that directly reflects the described fire behavior in old growth: reduced potential for crown fire spread implies reduced damage relative to younger stands.

Step-by-Step Solution:
Link cause and effect: fewer ladder fuels and higher branches → harder for fire to crown.Conclude: damage is reduced in old-growth conditions.Reject options that prescribe actions (cutting or thinning) or contradict the described protection.

Verification / Alternative check:
If crown fires are the most devastating and old growth resists crowning, it follows that damage is mitigated in old growth.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:

• B/C: Prescriptions not stated.
• D: Opposite of the point.
• E: Debris accumulation is not asserted.

Common Pitfalls:
Confusing management recommendations with textual support; the passage is descriptive, not prescriptive.

Final Answer:
forest fire damage is reduced in old-growth forests.