Clearwater Ranger District plans prescribed burning

The Clearwater Ranger District will be conducting several prescribed burns throughout the district over the next few months.

Two different types of prescribed burning will occur:

• one type associated with natural fuels
• the other associated with logging slash

The "natural fuels" projects are designed to minimize the effects of future wildfire events by reducing fuel loadings and continuity. These prescribed fires also provide many benefits to wildlife by creating a higher quality and greater quantity of grass, forb and brush browse. Some road and trail systems in the vicinity of these projects may be temporarily closed during prescribed burning operations. It may take several days to complete these projects, and they could produce smoke for multiple days following ignition.

The natural fuels projects include:

• Blue Ridge (South Fork and Johns Creek drainages), 1,500 acres
• Silver Surveyor (South Fork drainage), 1,500 acres
• Middle Fork (Middle Fork Clearwater), 750 acres
• Meadow Face (Lower Meadow Creek), 290 acres

The following burn projects are associated with past timber harvest. The general objective for these units would be to reduce residual fuel loadings created as a result of the commercial harvest operations.

These burns will generally be shorter duration and more localized in nature than the natural fuels projects listed above:

• Middle Fork Timber Sale (Middle Fork Clearwater), 131 acres
• Otter Wing Timber Sale (Blue Ridge), 137 acres;
• Yew Rock Timber Sale (McComas Meadows Area), 549 acres
• Lucky Marble Timber Sale (Hungry Ridge), 112 acres

Please contact Tim Theisen at (208) 983-4039 or Barry Ruklic at (208) 983-4032 at the Clearwater Ranger District with any questions about the prescribed burn projects. Pamphlets are available at the Supervisor's Office, outlining the location and objectives of each prescribed burn project.