The Watershed Research and Training Center reports that it is planning a prescribed burn in conjunction with the Plumas Underburn Cooperative. Conditions permitting, personnel will be conducting broadcast burning on private property in the community of Valley Ranch this week.
This burn will be conducted by citizens and wildland fire professionals in order to reduce fire hazard for the community, say organizers. The burn is part of a larger effort to manage the property for fire safety and forest health.
Unlike smoke from wildfires, smoke impacts from prescribed fire can be mitigated by burning in favorable fuel and wind conditions. Considerations have been made to reduce smoke impacts to communities from this event, say organizers: “We hope that residents will tolerate smoke that is encountered as a short-term impact.”
This burn is permitted by the Northern Sierra Air Quality Management District. Air quality information is available via the Fire and Smoke Map, AirNow.gov and myairdistrict.com. Organizers say that local fire and air quality agencies have been notified, and they request that residents do not report the fire.
Plumas Underburn Cooperative is a program of Plumas County Fire Safe Council and Feather River Resource Conservation District. The organization is volunteer-based and organized with the intention of promoting safe communities and resilient forests and landscapes, and making prescribed fire of use to anyone in Plumas County.