PRINEVILLE, Ore. – Due to the
precipitation received over the weekend, fire managers on the Ochoco National
Forest have cancelled plans for prescribed burning near Spears Meadow and near
Black Canyon Wilderness. They will resume burning hand piles along Forest Road
22 near Walton Lake instead.
Firefighters were able to accomplish about 600
acres of prescribed burning last week in the Willow Pine burn units, located in
the southeast corner of the National Forest, about five miles south of Frazier
campground near Porcupine and Sunflower creeks.
This week
they will resume burning hand piles along Forest Road 22, between Ochoco Ranger
Station and Walton Lake.
The piles are left over from a mechanical
thinning project to reduce hazardous fuels and fire danger along the popular
route. Piles created from this type of treatment are allowed to dry for one to
two years to reduce smoke emissions and increase consumption of piled material.
Light smoke will be visible during ignition
periods but will be short in duration. Prescribed fire signs will be placed
along the road. Burning will continue as long as weather and fuel conditions
allow.
All prescribed burning is proposed, analyzed,
and planned ahead of time by the Forest Service as part of restoration and
fuels management projects. Fuels specialists follow policies outlined in the
Oregon Smoke Management Plan, which governs prescribed fires (including pile
burning) and attempts to minimize impacts to visibility and public health.
For more information, visit the Ochoco
National Forest website at www.fs.usda.gov/ochoco and
follow us on Twitter @CentralORFire, or visit our interactive prescribed fire
map online at http://go.usa.gov/3hkwJ
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