Pile burn to start Friday near Black Canyon Campground

Nov. 14—Forest officials are taking advantage of recent snowfall to move forward with plans for prescribed burns.

Ignitions are scheduled Friday on a pile burn in the Española Ranger District, in the 52-acre North Ridge Unit along Hyde Park Road and adjacent to the Black Canyon Campground. Fire managers expect the burn to be complete in one day.

Smoke may be visible from Santa Fe and neighboring areas. The U.S. Forest Service recommends smoke-sensitive people take precautions during burn days.

Pile burns are meant to consume slash, or cut branches and other debris, collected during forest thinning in an attempt to reduce the amount of fuel that could feed wildfires.

Late this week, southwest winds are expected to improve smoke dispersion, according to a Forest Service news release.

“This means we have a couple of favorable days for burning late this week, followed by another round of accumulating snow in the mountains early next week,” Forest Service meteorologist Kerry Jones said in a news release.

To take advantage of the favorable weather, ignition started Thursday on two sites near Cuba, including a site more than a mile southwest of the Rancho del Chaparral Girl Scout ranch and another location near the Deer Lakes community.

Closer to Jemez, ignition started Thursday on a pile burn near the Seven Springs community and the State Fish Hatchery.

The Forest Service is holding an open house from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Friday at the Coyote Ranger District Office, 20 Private Drive 1707 in Coyote, where fire managers will be available to answer questions about upcoming pile burn projects tentatively planned in the ranger district.

As burn locations and dates are confirmed, the Santa Fe National Forest will post information on its website, www.fs.usda.gov/santafe, and Facebook Page, www.facebook.com/santafeNF. Information about prescribed burns also will be posted on the New Mexico Fire Information website, nmfireinfo.com.

EMEA Tribune is not involved in this news article, it is taken from our partners and or from the News Agencies. Copyright and Credit go to the News Agencies, email news@emeatribune.com Follow our WhatsApp verified Channel