Sierra National Forest
Credit: Sierra National Forest
Sierra National Forest (NF) Plans the Dinkey South Understory Prescribed (Rx) Fire
June 8, 2017 - Prather, CA. - Fire Managers on the High Sierra Ranger District are planning to begin ignitions for the 977 acre Dinkey South Understory prescribed (Rx) fire, on Monday June 12, 2017. Using the advantage of favorable weather conditions, fire personnel and equipment will be committed to this project until the treatment is extinguished as burn days permit. The 977 acre understory is broken up into several units and it is expected to take approximately one to two weeks to complete ignitions, with active burning being visible for several weeks after.
In 2010 & 2011 this was the very first Dinkey Collaborative Forest Landscape Restoration Project (DFLR), to reduce ladder fuels, by thinning overly dense forest stands to provide for forest resiliency using mechanical and prescribed fire treatments. The objective of this prescribed burn treatment is to introduce fire to protect our local communities from destructive wildfire by not only reducing hazardous fuel conditions but by restoring, enhancing and sustaining a healthy forest ecosystem. By burning during cooler and wetter times of the year, these burns are less intense, easier to control and produce significantly less smoke than a wildfire during the summer months.
The Forest Service coordinates all burning activities with the San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District to time the project to coincide with favorable weather conditions and smoke dispersion. Smoke may be visible from the greater Fresno/Clovis communities, and along Hwy168. Localized smoke impacts may be felt around Shaver Lake, Dinkey Creek and McKinley Grove roads. For regional information about air quality, smoke conditions, and health effects, visit www.valleyair.org or visit www.airnow.gov.
Visitors may see smoke, active fire, and firefighters during the burn, and are asked to drive slowly and carefully as they enjoy the forest. For firefighter and public safety, signs will be posted along roadways where burning is taking place.
For questions regarding the Dinkey South Understory Rx fire, contact Adam Hernandez Fuels Specialist, High Sierra Ranger District Office at (559) 855-5355.
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Source: Sierra National Forest
