September 25, 2019 – The Truckee Ranger District of Tahoe National Forest is planning a prescribed burn of 40-110 acres Thursday and possibly Friday, September 26th and 27th near Prosser OHV staging area and Hwy 89 North, west of the highway. T18N R16E sec 28.
We have been monitoring weather patterns and fuel moisture on these burn units to ensure we meet the prescription outlined in the burn plan. Predicted weather forecasts over the next week is for a more wet and cold weather pattern. This prescribed fire has been planned for several years, however we have not been able to implement due to weather conditions or resource availability. If we control when and where fires are ignited, we will reduce the threat of a wildfire because the fuel is no longer available to burn. These planned prescribed fires will help reduce wildfires if enough of it is accomplished over the landscape. Smoke may settle into drainages and low lying areas during cooler nighttime temperatures and lift out the next day as temperatures increase.
After the prescribed burn is completed, the area will be patrolled and monitored daily. Patrolling and monitoring a prescribed burn after initial ignition will be carried out by qualified wildland fire fighters and will continue until fire is fully extinguished.
The Sierra Nevada Mountains are a fire dependent ecosystem. The presence of fire has sculpted and influenced the structure and growth of Sierra Nevada Forests for hundreds of years. Today, the risk of large, catastrophic wildfires has grown due rising temperatures, drought, forest disease, and the historic suppression of wildfires which has resulted in the buildup of forest fuels. When prescribed fires are successfully planned and implemented, the threat of large, catastrophic wildfires to our forests and adjacent communities is greatly reduced.
For more information on prescribed fire visit https://www.fs.fed.us/managing-land/prescribed-fire