Fires

Actually, the chief proponants of aggressive fire suppression have historically been the timber industry, not the conservationists (not to imply that you can't be both). I was in Yellowstone in 1988 when it burned and the park administration was criticised unmercifully by the Wyoming congressional delegation (not known to carry Sierra Club membership cards) for not fighting the fires aggressively enough.
The fact is that forests managed for timber harvest do require fire suppression to some degree. Old growth forests, on the other hand, need periodic fire to keep the fuel on the forest floor clear. One size doesn't fit all.
At Yellowstone, all the king's horses and men along with $300 million accomplished nothing, except for saving Old Faithful Inn. The fires raged all summer until the hand of God extinguished them in September with a mere 1" snowfall.
Yellowstone was meant to burn. It was not a devastating event but a renewal.
Brian