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Good Fires: Prescribed Fire in the South

With current weather conditions being so dry, you may have noticed several smoke plumes over the weekend. Several of these plumes were from Prescribed Fires which have several significant benefits to your local forested areas.

With current weather conditions being so dry, you may have noticed several smoke plumes over the weekend. Several of these plumes were from Prescribed Fires which have several significant benefits to your local forested areas.

Georgia Auto Brokers
Mitchell's Plumbing

 

Prescribed Fire in the South

Approximately 89% of the South’s 208 million acres of forestland is privately-owned, making it the nation’s stronghold for private forestland ownership. In order to sustain healthy forests and maintain the economic viability of forestland, forest management is vital.

Forest management practices such as thinning and prescribed burning create healthier, more productive forests. Overcrowded trees often struggle to survive, weakening them against insects or disease. Thinning competing trees allows remaining trees to grow faster and be more resistant to pests. Prescribed burning removes competing vegetation, improves habitat for wildlife, and reduces dangerous buildup of combustible forest fuels.

Fire plays a vital role in maintaining certain ecosystems. Although there have been regional variations across the United States, fire has been used as a management tool throughout history. In the South, it has been used to maintain oak and pine savannas, clear brush, create wildlife habitat, clear land for agriculture, control pests and improve livestock grazing.

What is Prescribed Fire?

Prescribed fire, also known as a controlled burn, refers to the controlled application of fire by a team of fire experts under specified weather conditions that help restore health to fire-adapted environments.

Prescribed fire reintroduces the beneficial effects of fire into an ecosystem, producing the kinds of vegetation and landscapes we want, and reducing the hazard of catastrophic wildfire caused by excessive fuel buildup.

For more on what is prescribed fire, visit Smokey Bear’s page on the subject.

Benefits of Prescribed Fire

South Summerville Baptist
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