USFS burning program heats up

The race is on to underburn thousands of acres of local National Forest land before dry conditions set in for the summer.

Mark Rapp, Assistant Fire Management Officer for the Sisters Ranger District, said that the service's current plans call for burning an estimated 4,000 acres this spring.

Prescribed underburning is a process the Forest Service uses to reduce accumulations of forest vegetation that might otherwise pose a danger of wildfire.

By controlling fire timing and intensity, the Forest Service hopes to eliminate combustible fuels on the forest floor that could cause hotter, uncontrolled fires during the hot, dry days of summer.

Underburns are designed to consume forest fuels close to the ground without harming mature trees.

Rapp said that the Forest Service's continuing goal is to reduce the potential fire danger, particularly in areas which are part of the urban interface.

As a result, smoke from the projects will be readily noticeable to people who live in those areas.

"We will do door-to-door contacts to notify some of the closest residents who might look out and see flames," Rapp said.

When winter conditions permitted, Rapp and his fellow fire crew members burned hand-stacked piles and isolated concentrations of dead vegetation.

Initiating underburns, however, means that the burn program is shifting into high gear.

Most of the areas slated for burning are south or west of town.

The area along the Squaw Creek Irrigation Canal has been targeted before and will see more burning this spring.

Units south of the Patterson Ranch and west of the Weir Grade (on the way to Three Creek Lake) are also slated to come under the torch.

Acreage near Tollgate and Crossroads also made the list, as well as new sites along the Santiam Highway corridor.

Rapp says that the individual burn sites typically range from 30 to 100 acres.

Flames are likely to be seen at the base of Black Butte, across the road from Black Butte Ranch, and along "Road 11" on the opposite side of the butte.

Some burns will also be initiated in more remote areas such as Jack Canyon and Green Ridge.

Last fall's sudden transition from dry weather to heavy snow limited chances to burn hand-stacked piles left over from forest thinning projects. The window of opportunity for those burns has already passed.

"We'll have to wait until fall on the rest of the Indian Ford piles and some around Black Butte Ranch," Rapp said.

Residents with questions about burning schedules or areas to be burned may call Daryl Davis at 549-7643.