Sonora, CA…The Stanislaus National Forest provides the following information about planned prescribed burns on the forest. Prescribed Fire Name / Ranger District FY19/FY20 Pile Burning, Summit Ranger District. General and Specific Location: Multiple locations on Summit Ranger District. Smoke may be visible from communities along the Highway 108 corridor, with some down canyon drift smoke visible in the evening and early morning. This project is a planned prescribed fire. Please do not report as a wildfire.

Projected Duration: Ignition of the prescribed burn is expected to begin the week of Sept. 23, 2019 and continue through June 2020, or as long as conditions allow. Burning is contingent on weather, fuel moisture, and air quality. All burning is monitored and conducted in accordance with state and county air quality guidelines and is closely coordinated with local county air quality control districts.

Planned Size of Prescribed Burn: Up to 4,000 acres of pile burning, with planned ignitions on 50 to 500 acres per day. Daily burn area will vary based on environmental conditions and smoke production. The size of the burn may vary with weather and fuel moisture conditions, as well as permissible air quality burn days.

Type of Prescribed Burn: Pile burning

Burn Project Objectives: The goal of this prescribed burn is to enhance public and firefighter safety by reducing the build-up of dead and down fuels and residual slash generated from forest thinning projects, timber salvage projects, and fuel break construction/maintenance.

Public Benefits: Prescribed burning is an effective, cost efficient method of reducing flammable forest fuels, improving firefighting capabilities, and reducing the impacts of large uncontrolled damaging wildland fires. Smoke may be visible from Highway 108 and in surrounding communities. Fire managers are working closely with local air districts and the California Air Resources Board to mitigate the effects of smoke on the public.

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