MOTHER LODE TRAILS
  • Home
  • About
  • Contact
  • Volunteer
  • Links
    • Law Enforcement Emergency
    • Federal, State, County Districts Parks & Trails
    • Running Clubs
    • Equestrian Clubs
    • Mt. Bike Clubs
    • Hiking Clubs
    • Trail Advocacy Organizations
    • Phone Numbers State & Federal Parks, Trails & Lands
    • Where to Eat on the Trails
  • News
  • Alerts

American River Ranger District Begins Fall Prescribed Fire Operations

9/22/2019

 
Picture
September 21, 2019
September 21, 2019 – The American River Ranger District on the Tahoe National Forest will begin conducting prescribed fire operations starting as early as September 20, 2019. Burning will continue through the fall and winter seasons if conditions continue to allow resource managers and specialists to reduce hazardous fuels and to re-establish healthy forest ecosystems. Fall precipitation and cooler temperatures are ideal for prescribed fire operations. Planned prescribed burning projects include low-to-moderate intensity burns of vegetation on the forest floor and burning of stacked woody material (piles) from timber harvest and forest fuels reduction projects.

The goals of these projects are to reduce the severity of future wildfires, restore forest health and diversity, and provide added protection for communities in the wildland urban interface. Prescribed fire will help to promote a more fire and pest resilient forest and improve habitat for wildlife. The Forest Service is also working to reduce dense stands of trees and brush using mechanical and hand thinning of vegetation throughout the Tahoe National Forest. All of these methods are important tools the organization uses to promote forest health and to reduce the size and frequency of high intensity wildfires.

Prescribed fire projects are conducted in accordance with an approved prescribed fire burn plan. Burn plans identify specific conditions under which burns will be conducted, including weather, number of personnel, and techniques to minimize smoke impacts. This information is used to decide when and where it is appropriate to burn.

The following is a list of prescribed fire projects currently planned for this fall:
North Divide: at Humbug Ridge Area – 600 acres of understory burning, aerial ignition may be used. Humbug Ridge is approximately 12 miles northeast of Foresthill.
Dead Wood: near Foresthill Genetics Center – 1200 acres of understory burning along Foresthill Divide Road. Project begins approximately 4 miles northeast of Foresthill and continues to the Sugar Pine reservoir (10) road.
Biggie: Near Big Trees Grove. 100 acres of hand pile burning. This will reduce the volume and density of continuous ladder fuels present in the project area.

Smoke from prescribed fire operations is normal and may continue for several days after ignition depending on the project size. Smoke will settle in low-lying areas in the morning and usually lifts out of an area during the day. All prescribed fires are monitored closely for burning and smoke dispersal conditions and, if necessary, action is taken to mitigate concerns as they arise. Forest Service fire managers coordinate with state and local air pollution control districts and monitor weather conditions closely prior to prescribed fire ignition. They wait for favorable conditions that will carry smoke away from densely populated areas. Crews also conduct test ignitions before lighting a larger area to verify how effectively fuels are consumed and how smoke will travel.

Fire managers are aware of and sensitive to the potential impact smoke and prescribed fire operations has on people and communities. Every effort is made to conduct prescribed fire operations during weather patterns that carry smoke away from populated areas and to notify the public of potentially unsafe conditions. The wildfires of recent memory are a reminder of the importance of fuels reduction and that smoke produced during a prescribed fire is less intense and of shorter duration than that of a large wildfire. Fire is a natural part of the Sierra ecosystem. Our prescribed fire program is very important for the land, the public, and firefighters. A little smoke now could prevent a lot of smoke later.

For more information call Brian Crawford at (530) 367-2224×227. For more information on prescribed fire on the Tahoe National Forest visit www.fs.usda.gov/tahoe.

CLICK HERE to see the original article in YubaNet.com.

Comments are closed.

    Archives

    May 2025
    April 2025
    March 2025
    February 2025
    January 2025
    December 2024
    November 2024
    October 2024
    September 2024
    August 2024
    July 2024
    June 2024
    May 2024
    April 2024
    March 2024
    February 2024
    January 2024
    December 2023
    November 2023
    October 2023
    September 2023
    August 2023
    July 2023
    June 2023
    May 2023
    April 2023
    March 2023
    February 2023
    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015

    Categories

    All

    RSS Feed

Home
Contact
 Mother Lode Trails is YOUR local volunteer-run trail information and resource website. Here you can find
up-to-the minute information on trail alerts, links and trail news for Placer,  Yuba, and Nevada counties.
Mother Lode Trails is trademarked.