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Hikers, bikers and others out in the Bent Creek Experimental Forest southwest of Asheville might want to get in their exercise early in the day on Thursday, Aug. 11.
Starting at 1 p.m. Thursday the U.S. Forest Service will close down trails in the Ledford Branch area near Lake Powhatan in preparation for a one-day prescribed burn today of some 42 acres of national forest land in the Bent Creek area of Buncombe County.
The prescribed fire is part of a multi-year research study led by scientists at Bent Creek Experimental Forest, part of the Forest Service Southern Research Station.
“The ultimate goal of the burn is to look at how prescribed fire affects hazardous fuel accumulation, how it affects understory species development and to look at overall forest structure,” said Tara Keyser, research forester with the Southern Research Station.
The burn is also part of a long-term study to determine the effects of repeated prescribed burning on oak regeneration, she said. Scientists at Bent Creek will evaluate how prescribed burns in the grown season of June-September versus the dormant seasons of January-March affect upland hardwood forest ecosystems.
The Forest Service will close Ledford Branch Road and Deer Lake Lodge Trails during the burn. All roads into Lake Powhatan and other areas of Bent Creek will be open to mountain bikers, hikers, anglers and campers.
The safety of firefighters and the lives and property of the public is the No. 1 priority, said Forest Service spokeswoman Zoe Hoyle. The public is asked to heed signs posted at trailheads and roads and to stay away from burn sites and off closed roads and trails. Nearby residents with respiratory health issues may need to stay indoors with windows closed if there is significant smoke. The Forest Service says it will do everything possible to reduce smoke from the prescribed burn.
The Forest Service is required to meet state air quality requirements and will conduct smoke modeling to reduce the possible effects of smoke emissions. Adequate personnel and equipment will be on site, and the fire should be completed in a single day.
For more information on prescribed fire visit Fire Management.
Article from CITIZEN-TIMES.com: Girls Gone Outdoors » Forest Service to hold prescribed burn in Bent Creek Thursday
Starting at 1 p.m. Thursday the U.S. Forest Service will close down trails in the Ledford Branch area near Lake Powhatan in preparation for a one-day prescribed burn today of some 42 acres of national forest land in the Bent Creek area of Buncombe County.
The prescribed fire is part of a multi-year research study led by scientists at Bent Creek Experimental Forest, part of the Forest Service Southern Research Station.
“The ultimate goal of the burn is to look at how prescribed fire affects hazardous fuel accumulation, how it affects understory species development and to look at overall forest structure,” said Tara Keyser, research forester with the Southern Research Station.
The burn is also part of a long-term study to determine the effects of repeated prescribed burning on oak regeneration, she said. Scientists at Bent Creek will evaluate how prescribed burns in the grown season of June-September versus the dormant seasons of January-March affect upland hardwood forest ecosystems.
The Forest Service will close Ledford Branch Road and Deer Lake Lodge Trails during the burn. All roads into Lake Powhatan and other areas of Bent Creek will be open to mountain bikers, hikers, anglers and campers.
The safety of firefighters and the lives and property of the public is the No. 1 priority, said Forest Service spokeswoman Zoe Hoyle. The public is asked to heed signs posted at trailheads and roads and to stay away from burn sites and off closed roads and trails. Nearby residents with respiratory health issues may need to stay indoors with windows closed if there is significant smoke. The Forest Service says it will do everything possible to reduce smoke from the prescribed burn.
The Forest Service is required to meet state air quality requirements and will conduct smoke modeling to reduce the possible effects of smoke emissions. Adequate personnel and equipment will be on site, and the fire should be completed in a single day.
For more information on prescribed fire visit Fire Management.
Article from CITIZEN-TIMES.com: Girls Gone Outdoors » Forest Service to hold prescribed burn in Bent Creek Thursday