Fuels Program

The Flagstaff Center Fuels Program consists of pre and post burn monitoring, fuel moisture analysis, and prescribed fire. Each year there is approximately 3500 to 4500 acres of broadcast burning that occurs on the District. Most of this prescribed fire is conducted from mid September through mid October, however occasionally we do burn in the spring. There are several different types of broadcast burns that we may conduct throughout the year. They include wildlife improvement projects, fuels reduction projects, and wildland urban interface projects. There are three primary fuel types that we burn in. The most common is Ponderosa Pine, but we also burn in open grass land and open juniper stands. Throughout late fall and into winter we also conduct a number of pile burns. Acres on the pile burns vary year to year depending on availability of the piles. We also interact with a number of cooperators during the prescribed fire season.

The Coconino National Forest made a significant step towards treating the forest with fire through its Resource Benefit fires in 2009. All four districts on the Coconino used this new policy which allows us to manage naturally started fires to improve forest health through the reintroduction of fire into fire dependent ecosystems. All fire resources and many other disciplines on the Coconino participated treating a total of nearly 25,000 acres.