Tonto National Forest firefighters will begin a two-day, 2,932-acre prescribed fire on the Payson Ranger District beginning Nov. 7.
Named the Hardscrabble prescribed fire, crews will burn timber and grass to reduce surface fuels in the project area located west of Pine, Arizona, and south of Strawberry, Arizona. Officials say that smoke likely will remain in the area through the weekend.
Crews will cease ignitions each day by 3 p.m. to help minimize smoke impacts to surrounding communities.
The prescribed fire is part of a larger restoration project in collaboration with SRP (Arizona’s electric power and water utility company), Arizona Game and Fish Department, and Pine-Strawberry Fuels Reduction.
The operation will improve two watersheds: Hardscrabble Creek into Fossil Creek; and Oak Springs Canyon into Pine Creek. Prescribed fires aid watersheds by reducing the risk of large-scale wildland fires. Burned watersheds are prone to increased flooding and erosion, which can negatively affect water-supply reservoirs, water quality, and drinking-water treatment processes.
In addition to watershed improvement, the goals of these treatments include improving plant and wildlife habitat to increase biodiversity for wildlife corridors. Prescribed fires also help protect culturally significant native foods and plants, improve timber stands and recreational opportunities, and reduce the threat of invasive species on the landscape.
Prescribed fire operations are part of the USDA Forest Service’s overarching wildfire crisis strategy to reduce wildfire risk to people, communities, and natural resources while sustaining and restoring healthy, resilient fire-adapted forests.
For additional information, contact the Payson Ranger Station located at 1009 E. Highway 260, Payson, Arizona. Or phone the station at (928) 474-7900 Monday – Friday between 8 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. and from 1:30 - 4:30 p.m.
For the latest news and information about the Tonto National Forest, follow along on Facebook @TontoNationalForest or Twitter @TontoForest.