The U-S Forest Service and Nebraska Game and Parks have announced plans for multiple prescribed fires this spring in the Pine Ridge south of Chadron, including one between Deadhorse Road and Hwy 385 that would be the region’s biggest ever.
Pine Ridge District Ranger Tim Buskirk of the Nebraska National Forests And Grasslands says the hope is to conduct the roughly 1,700-acre burn 10-miles southwest if Cgadrib within the next 10 day, if the weather cooperates.
Prescribed fires are conducted only when conditions such as temperature, humidity, wind, and fuel moisture fall within a relative narrow range. If conditions don’t meet the criteria, a burn is postponed.
The 1,700-acre fire would include the western portion of the Chadron Creek Wildlife Management Area, three Forest Service pastures, and some private land. Much of it was burned in the 2012 wildfires and still has countless pine trees killed in those fires that are hindering access for both noxious weed control and recreation.
Buskirk says the planned burn is broken into sections with defendable fire lines so that all or just some can be included or so that the fire can be held if conditions on the ground change. He says firefighters will be on scene patrolling, observing, and acting if needed until no smoke is visible.
Game and Parks and the Forest Service would also like to conduct about a half-dozen other prescribed burns this spring if the conditions hold. For Game and Parks, those would be in the Bordeaux, Ponderosa and Peterson WMAs.
Buskirk says the Forest Service has plans for the Slicker Allotment about 5 miles south of Chadron and the Collins Allotment 7-miles southeast of the city. Game and Parks conducted an 85-acre burn Tuesday on another part of the Chadron Creek WMA.
Prescribed burns mimic the way natural fires historically shaped the vegetation mix of an area before settlement led to suppression of most fires and a dangerous buildup of fuels that can lead to catestrophic wildfires.
These low-intensity Pine Ridge burns are intended to remove those fuels and to slow or halt the invasion of undesirable plant species while enhancing grazing and wildlife habitat.
More information on the proposed burns can be obtained at the Nebraska National Forests and Grasslands headquarters on North Main in Chadron or the Game and Parks Ponderosa WMA field office near Crawford