YAKIMA — Prescribed fire projects are beginning again across the state on public lands with the arrival of autumn. In the Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest, over 13,000 acres are set to have prescribed fires starting this week, when conditions allow. Recreationists may see smoke from these fires.
Prescribed fires bring back fire to the natural ecology of the forest and reduce fuels that can make wildfires worse in the summer. The U.S. Forest Service will also be burning debris piles from other forest treatments.
“These ongoing efforts to restore and improve forest resiliency in and around central Washington communities is crucial,” said Aaron Rowe, a fuels officer with the U.S. Forest Service, in a release. “Prescribed fire helps reduce the risk of destructive wildfires by reducing and removing hazardous fuel loads, restores habitat, and returns fire back to the ecosystem.”
The work is funded by the Bi-Partisan Infrastructure Law and Inflation Reduction Act.
The Cle Elum Ranger District has 577 acres of planned burning:
- Swauk Pine Legacy Tree Hand Piles: 378 acres on the east side of Highway 97, approximately 15 miles northeast of Cle Elum. Smoke may be visible from Highway 97.
- Nugget Machine Piles: 80 acres on the east side of Highway 97, 20 miles northeast of Cle Elum. Smoke may be visible from Highway 97.
- Taneum Machine Piles: 84 acres south of I:90, approximately 15 miles southeast of Cle Elum.
- Walter Springs Piles: 35 acres south of I:90, roughly 20 miles southeast of Cle Elum.
The Naches Ranger District has 4,500 acres of planned burning:
