Prescribed burning is planned for the Bald Range area between April 2 and May 11, 2012, weather conditions permitting. This controlled burning will assist with ecosystem restoration and will occur in several phases during this period.

The burns will be conducted by Wildfire Management Branch crews and staff from the Okanagan Shuswap District. The Bald Range burn area covers an estimated 250 hectares, north of the Princeton-Summerland Road, approximately 11 kilometres west of Summerland.

Historically, grasslands and open forests in the Okanagan have been renewed through frequent, low-intensity ground fires. Such fires limit tree encroachment, rejuvenate understory plants (trees and shrubs that grow beneath the forest canopy but above ground-cover plants) and maintain open grassland and open forests that contain large trees.

The reintroduction of managed, low-intensity ground fires to these grasslands and open forests is intended to restore and maintain plant communities that are native to these areas.

The Bald Range prescribed burn is part of an ongoing restoration program administered by the Government of British Columbia in collaboration with local ranchers, the B.C. Grasslands Conservation Council, the Shuswap Okanagan Forest Association, the Forum for Research and Extension in Natural Resources (FORREX), the B.C. Wildlife Federation and the Nature Trust of British Columbia.

A factsheet follows.

Contact:

Brennan Clarke
Public Affairs Officer
Ministry of Forests , Lands and Natural Resource Operations
250 356-5261

FACTSHEET

March 30, 2012 Ministry of Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations

Prescribed burning used as ecosystem management tool

• Fire is a normal, natural process in many of British Columbia's ecosystems. Many species of plants, birds, insects and other animals depend on fire for its regenerative properties.
• Fire helps control insects and the spread of disease in forests. It also contributes to forest succession, as younger trees replace older trees. Having trees of various ages in a forest helps creates biodiversity.
• Prescribed burning is one of the tools used by forest professionals to achieve land management objectives. For example, fire can be used to enhance habitat and improve forage for cattle, deer, bighorn sheep and moose. A controlled burn can also reduce fuel loads (combustible material such as underbrush and dead wood) and reduce the risk of wildfire in interface areas (where urban development borders on rural areas).
• The size and intensity of prescribed burns are carefully planned and controlled to meet management objectives for fire-maintained ecosystems. Prescribed burns are only ignited when weather conditions are favourable and when the fire will not create excessive smoke. Important factors that are used to determine the date of a burn include the venting index, temperature, humidity and wind conditions.
• The venting index is a measure of how quickly smoke will disperse under specific conditions. Prescribed fires may only be ignited on days when the venting index indicates the smoke will not be trapped close to the ground.
• All prescribed burns must comply with the Environmental Management Act's open burning smoke control regulation, which helps minimize the amount of smoke generated. This regulation also states that open flames in a prescribed burn must be extinguished within 96 hours.
• A prescribed burn is ignited and continuously monitored by trained firefighting crews to ensure that the fire does not get out of control. The fire crew supervisor (the "burn boss") is responsible for ensuring that the initial burn conditions are favourable and that the fire is extinguished once the prescribed burn is completed.

Contact:

Brennan Clarke
Public Affairs Officer
Ministry of Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations
250 356-5261