Nevada County RCD continues free prescribed fire series - January 6, 2024
The Nevada County Resource Conservation District (NCRCD) will continue a series of free courses and field trips this winter on prescribed burning. Prescribed burning, or “good fire”, is the careful and controlled application of low intensity fire. It can be used as a tool to clean up forest floor fuels and improve forest health and native plants across small or large areas. Prescribed fire has been demonstrated to reduce the likelihood of high intensity wildfire and heavy smoke. Recognizing this, the California Strategic Fire Plan, developed by CAL FIRE and partners, emphasizes increasing the knowledge and capacity of private landowners to use prescribed burning.
During the Dust Bowl, resource conservation districts were formed across the country to help private landowners conserve soil, water, crops and their land. Since 1943, the Nevada County RCD has provided technical advice and education to landowners in land stewardship. The RCD offers site visits to assess a variety of needs including pond management, forest health, soil conservation, and prescribed burning.
Recently, NCRCD added a Prescribed Fire Program Manager, Joaquin Pastrana to its staff. Joaquin brings both experience in prescribed burning and working to help landowners. Along with NCRCD board director Jo Ann Fites-Kaufman, Joaquin will be offering a variety of free courses on prescribed burning, through a Community Wildfire Defense Grant funded by the Federal Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill.
NCRCD’s courses emphasize hands-on education and will cover the nuts and bolts of prescribed burning. This will include the basics of prescribed burning, how to use low intensity fire in a safe, legal, responsible and controlled way.
Registration is required for all courses, but they are free of charge and all are welcome. In early 2024, three courses will be offered:
Prescribed Fire 101, is an overview of prescribed fire, touching on fire behavior, fuels, ecology, liability and how to plan and conduct a burn.
Conduct a Burn Workshops, will be held at the site of a landowner who has conducted previous prescribed burns and will cover steps needed before, during and after a prescribed burn. As weather and conditions allow, NCRCD will provide opportunities to attend and help with actual prescribed burns as they happen. Interested residents can visit NCRCD.org to register for upcoming courses or call (530)798-5529 for more information.
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