Burns Planned For N. Idaho Forests Controlled Fires Reduce Instances Of Large Forest Fires

Forest officials will set fires on roughly 5,000 acres in North Idaho, starting this week.

The fires - called “prescribed burns” - are generally used to reduce fire danger by removing debris and brushy growth that follow logging operations. And to boost tasty plants for wildlife.

The Idaho Panhandle National Forests on Tuesday announced its plans to start prescribed burns on 4,000 to 5,000 acres.

The first small burns started Monday, with a one-acre fire near Canfield Mountain. Officials say the acreage slated for fires is about as much as they burned in the last few years.

Crews will drop incendiary “bombs” from helicopters, lighting debris with the combination of diesel and a gelling ingredient that holds the flame. Crews on the ground will also use drip torches to start fires.

Burns on all the districts range in size from 10 acres to several hundred acres.

Fire danger is highest in areas east of Coeur d’Alene, Hayden and Lower Priest Lake where the 1996 ice storm knocked down trees, according to Peggy Polichio, a Panhandle Forests spokeswoman.

About half the fires will be started in logging slash piles, the rest in dense brush to encourage plants and shrubs favored by deer and elk.

Until six or seven years ago, the Forest Service did this kind of burning in the fall. But stagnant air conditions in fall tends to trap smoke along the ground.

“Now we do 80 percent of our program in the spring,” Polichio said. “From an air quality standpoint, we get much better transport of smoke.”

Each of the five districts on the Panhandle National Forests will do some prescribed burning between now and the end of May. The timing depends on weather and site conditions. Crews need at least three sunny days for grass and undergrowth to dry out..

Along with air quality benefits, spring burning reduces the risk of prescribed fires escaping boundaries because surrounding forests are moist, Polichio said.

Fires are planned across 3,000 acres on the St. Joe Ranger District, according to the district’s Jim Bartlett. Bartlett flew over the St. Joe country on Monday, to see what’s free of snow.

“Stuff below 3,500 feet is pretty much open now,” Bartlett said.

Fires up the St. Joe River will be set in remote areas up the Big Creek drainage and Marble Creek.

Call individual districts for more information.