Ochoco NF cancels prescribed burns due to rain

Due to the weekend’s rainfall, fire managers on the Ochoco National Forest said Monday they have canceled plans for prescribed burning near Spears Meadow and near Black Canyon Wilderness.

They said they will resume burning hand piles along Forest Road 22 near Walton Lake instead.

Firefighters were able to accomplish about 600 acres of prescribed burning last week in the Willow Pine burn units, located in the southeast corner of the forest, about five miles south of Frazier campground near Porcupine and Sunflower creeks.

This week, they will resume burning hand piles along Forest Road 22, between Ochoco Ranger Station and Walton Lake.

The piles are left over from a mechanical thinning project to reduce hazardous fuels and fire danger along the popular route. Piles created from this type of treatment are allowed to dry for one to two years to reduce smoke emissions and increase consumption of piled material.

Light smoke will be visible during ignition periods but will be short in duration. Prescribed fire signs will be placed along the road. Burning will continue as long as weather and fuel conditions allow.

All prescribed burning is proposed, analyzed, and planned ahead of time by the Forest Service as part of restoration and fuels management projects. Fuels specialists follow policies outlined in the Oregon Smoke Management Plan, which governs prescribed fires (including pile burning) and attempts to minimize impacts to visibility and public health.

For more information, visit the Ochoco National Forest website at www.fs.usda.gov/ochoco and follow us on Twitter @CentralORFire, or visit our interactive prescribed fire map online at http://go.usa.gov/3hkwJ