Recent storms not delaying fire prevention in the Tahoe National Forest
(FOX40.COM) — Come rain, sleet, snow or near-freezing temperatures, the fire personnel of the Tahoe National Forest and their partnering agencies continue to improve the fire safety of California’s forests.
While the ground is covered with several inches of snow, preventing larger-scale prescribed burns across forestlands, fire crews are conducting pile burns.
These slash piles are built up using downed branches and limbs of low-hanging understory, smaller materials left behind when removing larger fire-prone materials, fallen trees and other materials that can create a dangerous fuel load along the forest floor.
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According to the National Forest Service, pile burning is the most cost-efficient way of removing these leftover materials from the landscape while also improving wildlife habitats by introducing fire to a fire-adapted ecosystem.
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“Burning excess vegetation also benefits forest health by making room for new growth which provides forage for wildlife, recycles nutrients back into the soil and helps reduce the spread of insects and disease,” the Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit writes.
Currently, there are three ongoing pile burns in the Tahoe National Forest:
• Yuba River Pile Burn Projects near Nevada City, Nevada County
• American River Pile Burn Projects near Foresthill, Placer County
• Eastside Pileburn along the Sierra County and Nevada County line
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The North Lake Tahoe Fire Protection District is also conducting pile burns at;
• Mill Creek drainage
• Crystal Bay and State Route 28
Crews with CAL FIRE Nevada-Yuba-Placer are also assisting with North Lake Tahoe Fire’s pile burns.
“Each operation follows a specialized burn plan, which considers smoke dispersal conditions, temperature, humidity, wind, and vegetation moisture. All of this information is used to decide when and where to burn,” the Tahoe Forest Fire Team wrote in a news release.
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