Shasta-Trinity National Forest crews will be prescribed burning several hundred acres of piles in the next several weeks. The main goals of these projects are to reduce the severity of future wildfires and provide added protection for communities in the wildland urban interface.

Actual project ignition will depend upon local weather and fuel conditions.

Planned locations within the South Fork Management Unit include the Sims Reforestation Site Prep and Roadside/Landline Buffer hand piles (10 miles north/northwest of Hyampom); Upper Harrison Gulch Small Project hand piles (4 miles northwest of Platina); 2015 Fires Reforestation site prep and plantation thinning hand piles in vicinity of Barker Mountain (8 miles northeast of Hayfork) and Plummer Peak (4 miles south of Hayfork); Trinity Post-Fire Hazard Reduction hand piles (3 miles north of Hyampom); Buck Fire Suppression Repair piles (15 miles south of Wildwood); Texas Spider landing piles (8 mile southwest of Wildwood); and Westside IRTC landing piles (8 miles northwest of Forest Glen).

In the Shasta-McCloud Management Unit, planned locations include the McCloud, Sims and Ash Creek Stations, Sims Campground, Pollard Day Use site and the Elk, Harris, Mudflow, Black Fox, Porcupine, Glover and Mountain Thin project areas located near the Mt. Shasta and McCloud areas.

“With the continued cold temperatures and precipitation, it’s an ideal time to conduct these prescribed burn projects,” explained Prescribed Fire & Fuels Specialist Dan Ostmann. “These projects are conducted in accordance with an approved burn plan to ensure the safety of people and property. Burn plans describe the specific conditions under which burns will be conducted including appropriate weather parameters and ways to minimize smoke impacts.”

Pre-ignition public notifications will be posted on the Forest’s www.facebook.com/ShastaTrinityNF and www.twitter.com/ShastaTrinityNF pages. Residents and visitors are asked to avoid areas where prescribed burns are being conducted and some may see or smell smoke. People should not be alarmed; the fires will be carefully monitored. Local fire and government authorities will be notified prior to burn days and kept informed throughout burning operations. Specific project information and accomplishment reports will be available online at https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/6239/.

Source: U.S. Forest Service