Category Archives: Kaibab National Forest

Pile Burning on Williams Ranger District Recommencing

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WILLIAMS – Fuels reduction efforts on the Williams Ranger District of the Kaibab National Forest will begin on Friday of this week and continue into next week as weather conditions permit. Machine piles on two separate timber sale units on the district have been evaluated and are suitable for ignition at this time.

383 acres of piles in the Wright Timber Sale area located north of Parks on the south side of Government Hill will be ignited Friday, and an additional 200 acres will begin on Monday of next week on the Shiner Timber Sale project located just southwest of Dogtown Lake along forest road 140.

Fuels specialists will continue to assess conditions in the weeks ahead and plan to continue implementing prescribed fire activities as opportunities arise.

Crews will use tactics to minimize smoke production and reduce the potential for impacts to the surrounding roadways and adjacent communities.
During ignition operations, smoke will be visible from areas surrounding these units but is expected to be light in volume and short in duration.

These pile burns are just a couple of many ongoing forest restoration projects happening that are critical to improving forest health and increasing vital protection of forest resources and community values.
As with all prescribed burns, weather conditions will determine the day’s most suitable for ignitions that have the least amount of negative effects on air quality and the best possible ventilation.

The public can view approved prescribed fires for any given day on the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality’s website at smoke.azdeq.gov/.
To learn more about smoke and public health, visit bit.ly/SmokeHealthAwareness.
Notifications of upcoming prescribed fire projects are provided regularly throughout the year. Additional information can also be obtained through the following sources:

· Kaibab National Forest Website: www.fs.usda.gov/kaibab
· Twitter: www.twitter.com/KaibabNF
· Facebook: www.facebook.com/KaibabNF
· Fire Information Recorded Hotline: 928-635-8311
· InciWeb: inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/5922/

Pile burn activity resumes near Jacob Lake

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FREDONIA – Firefighters plan to burn piles on the North Kaibab Ranger District of the Kaibab National Forest today through Friday. Ignitions began this morning and are anticipated to last one to two days. Meanwhile, fire managers will continue to monitor conditions and evaluate additional opportunities to initiate more pile burning in other locations throughout the district, weather permitting.

From October through December, fire managers burned approximately 750 acres of piles to reduce hazardous fuels that if left untreated could threaten a high severity, high-intensity wildfire once warmer, dryer weather arrives. Visitors are reminded that during and for several hours following ignitions, smoke may be present on roadways in short durations. Drivers should use caution, drive slowly, turn on headlights, and avoid stopping in areas where fire personnel is working.

General Information: Implementation of any prescribed fire, including a pile burn, is dependent on weather and fuel conditions including winds, temperature, humidity, the moisture of vegetation, and ventilation conditions for dispersal of smoke. All prescribed fires are subject to approval by the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality. For additional information on the Smoke Management Division or to view prescribed burn authorizations for any given day, visit https://smoke.azdeq.gov/.

No road or trail closures are expected. However, in the interest of safety, visitors are always reminded to use caution when traveling in the vicinity of prescribed fires, as firefighters, fire-related traffic, and smoke may all be present.

Notifications of upcoming prescribed fires are provided regularly throughout the year. Members of the public can find this information through the following sources:

· Fire Information Recorded Hotline: 928-635-8311
· Twitter: www.twitter.com/KaibabNF
· Kaibab website “Recent News”: www.fs.usda.gov/kaibab
· Kaibab Facebook: www.facebook.com/KaibabNF

Pile Burning on Bill Williams Mountain to Begin Late December

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WILLIAMS — Fuels reduction efforts on Bill Williams Mountain on the Williams Ranger District of the Kaibab National Forest are set to commence next week after the Christmas holiday. Prescribed burning of several units of slash piles along forest road 111 on the north and east slopes of the mountain will begin taking place as weather conditions permit.

Crews will start by treating small blocks each day in order to minimize smoke production and reduce the potential for impacts to the surrounding roadways and adjacent community.
During ignition operations, smoke will be highly visible from the City of Williams and from the Interstate 40 corridor from both the east bound and west bound lanes approaching the city.

Minimal to light smoke impacts may occur, however winds are expected to transport smoke to the south away from the developed areas and be very short in duration.

These pile burns are just one of many ongoing forest restoration projects happening on Bill Williams Mountain that are critical to improving forest health and increasing the protection of vital watershed resources for the city.

Work will also be continuing in the weeks ahead between Parks and Spring Valley on the south side of Government Hill, where crews began pile burns earlier this month.
As with all prescribed burns, weather conditions will determine the day’s most suitable for ignitions that have the least amount of negative effects on air quality and the best possible ventilation.

The public can view approved prescribed fires for any given day on the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality’s website at smoke.azdeq.gov/.

To learn more about smoke and public health, visit bit.ly/SmokeHealthAwareness.

Notifications of upcoming prescribed fire projects are provided regularly throughout the year. Additional information can also be obtained through the following sources:

· Kaibab National Forest Website: www.fs.usda.gov/kaibab
· Twitter: www.twitter.com/KaibabNF
· Facebook: www.facebook.com/KaibabNF
· Fire Information Recorded Hotline: 928-635-8311
· InciWeb: inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/5922/

Recent Pile Burns Continue Smoldering on Kaibab National Forest

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WILLIAMS – Kaibab National Forest fire officials are alerting the public that recent prescribed fire activities may be visible at several locations across the Williams and Tusayan Ranger Districts over the next several days and could possibly linger into the approaching Christmas holiday.

Forest visitors may see fire activity from recent pile burning operations that have been occurring over the past two weeks on the Kaibab National Forest. Low intensity surface creeping, smoldering logs, and light smoke in the vicinity of these project areas will continue to be visible as unseasonable warmer and dryer weather continues into the week ahead. All of these active burns are confined within their containment boundaries, and pose no control problems as they continue to consume debris.

Prescribed fire project areas are being monitored daily by fire personnel to ensure public safety and to continue meeting fuels reduction and forest restoration objectives.

As winter weather conditions continue on the Kaibab National Forest, fire managers will look for additional opportunities to treat landscapes whenever appropriate. Additional information will be provided as specific prescribed fire projects are scheduled in the future.

The public can view approved prescribed fires for any given day on the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality’s website at smoke.azdeq.gov/.

To learn more about smoke and public health, visit bit.ly/SmokeHealthAwareness.

Notifications of upcoming prescribed fire projects are provided regularly throughout the year. Additional information can also be obtained through the following sources:

· Kaibab National Forest Website: www.fs.usda.gov/kaibab
· Twitter: www.twitter.com/KaibabNF
· Facebook: www.facebook.com/KaibabNF
· Fire Information Recorded Hotline: 928-635-8311
· InciWeb: inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/5922/

Kaibab National Forest offices closed today

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WILLIAMS – Kaibab National Forest offices will be closed on Wednesday, December 5, in recognition of the National Day of Mourning honoring President George H. W. Bush.

In honor of President George H. W. Bush, President Trump has issued an Executive Order closing federal offices on Wednesday, December 5.

All Kaibab National Forest offices will resume normal business hours on Thursday, December 6.

North Kaibab Ranger District to host Holiday Open House

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Kaibab Forest Service photo

FREDONIA — The North Kaibab Ranger District will host a Holiday Open House at the Kaibab Plateau Visitor Center at Jacob Lake on Saturday, November 24, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. There will be a holiday craft activity for families and tree permits for sale.

As a reminder, the Kaibab Plateau Visitor Center will be open for Christmas tree tag sales from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on November 17-18, November 24-25 and December 1.

Christmas tree tags may also be purchased at the district office in Fredonia from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday, excluding holidays. In addition to the normal district office hours, Christmas tree tags may also be purchased from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. on two Saturdays, November 24 and December 1. Please bring cash or check made payable to ‘USDA Forest Service’ for Christmas tree tag purchases.

For more information on the Holiday Open House, call (928) 643-7395.

For detailed Kaibab National Forest Christmas tree tag information throughout the season, visit http://bit.ly/KNFChristmasTags.

Kaibab National Forest to host additional public meeting for proposed landscape-scale forest restoration project

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WILLIAMS — The Kaibab National Forest plans to host an additional public meeting later this month to provide information and seek input and comments on a proposed project to reduce the threat of uncharacteristic, high-intensity wildfire and to restore the structure, species composition and function of ecosystems on the Kaibab Plateau.

This will be the third in a series of public meetings for the proposed Kaibab Plateau Ecological Restoration Project on the North Kaibab Ranger District of the Kaibab National Forest. The meeting is scheduled for November 27 from 9:30 a.m. to noon in Flagstaff. There will be a brief overview presentation starting at 9:30 a.m. followed by an opportunity for in-depth group discussion and questions. All interested members of the public are encouraged to attend.

Those planning to attend the November 27 session in Flagstaff should RSVP to Sue Farley, environmental coordinator for the Kaibab National Forest, at 928-635-8331 or sfarley@fs.fed.us. A confirmation, directions and additional background information will then be provided to those who respond.

The Kaibab National Forest has been hosting this series of public meetings in order to provide information and seek comments on the Kaibab Plateau Ecological Restoration Project. The project is designed to increase resiliency and overall health of vegetation and watersheds and to restore low-intensity fire to the fire-adapted ecosystems of the area. Specifically, the proposed action includes prescribed fire and non-commercial, mechanical vegetation treatments on about 511,000 acres of the North Kaibab Ranger District of the Kaibab National Forest.

Most of the Kaibab National Forest’s vegetation is adapted to recurring wildfires, and fire naturally plays a vital role in maintaining ecosystem health. The condition and structure of the project area’s forests, woodlands, shrublands and grasslands have changed dramatically from natural conditions, in large part because fire has been excluded due to decades of successful fire suppression efforts. Today, the project area contains uncharacteristically dense forests with many more young trees than were present historically, and climate change is making them vulnerable to more frequent high-intensity wildfires.

The project is intended to address those changed conditions by implementing prescribed fire and non-commercial, mechanical vegetation treatments. Prescribed fire would include broadcast burning and pile burning to reduce fuel levels and tree densities, control conifer regeneration, and promote understory plant vigor. Mechanical treatments would include pruning ladder fuels, mastication, chipping and thinning to remove smaller trees with the goal of protecting larger or older trees by targeting understory and ladder fuels.

For detailed project information, including the full proposed action document, please visit www.fs.usda.gov/project/?project=54226. For questions or to RSVP to the November 27 public meeting in Flagstaff, please contact Farley at 928-635-8331 or sfarley@fs.fed.us.

Prescribed Burning to continue on Kaibab National Forest beginning Friday

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WILLIAMS — Fuels reduction efforts will be continuing on both the Williams and Tusayan Ranger Districts beginning Friday of this week. Both districts will be conducting broadcast burns that could extend over the next several days as environmental and weather conditions permit.

The 12,000 acre Sunflower Prescribed Fire Project located approximately 8 miles southeast of Williams has been ongoing over the past year with nearly 7000 acres successfully treated to date. Aerial ignitions will continue as crews work toward completing the remaining 5000 acres on this project.Fire managers will also ignite a 245 acre unit approximately 3 miles south of Tusayan on the Reed Prescribed Fire Project beginning Friday and may treat an additional 354 acres just west of the town over the weekend ahead.

Opportunities to use prescribed fire to accomplish forest restoration objectives only exist during specific times of the year. Environmental conditions in the forest as well as precise weather patterns determine when these opportunities arise. The fall months usually present the most favorable time of year to achieve the most desirable effects for successful treatments.

During prescribed firing operations, campers and hunters are asked to avoid establishing campsites near the fire activity and seek alternative sites away from active burn areas.

Northeast winds are forecasted for several days as these burns begin which should alleviate impacts and transport smoke away from developed areas at both of these project locations.

Smoke may be visible from the communities of Parks, Sherwood Forest Estates, Garland Prairie, Bellemont, Grand Canyon Village, Tusayan, and Valle.Officials understand that smoke impacts to air quality may be unpleasant at times, however they can significantly reduce the amount and limit the duration more effectively using prescribed methods as opposed to an uncontrolled wildfire situation with long term effects.

During operations, fire personnel and vehicles working in these vicinities will be visible to the public. Motorists are reminded to slow down and drive with heightened caution when passing through active project areas.

All prescribed burning on the Kaibab National Forest is subject to approval by the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality. For additional information on the Smoke Management Division of the ADEQ and to view prescribed burns authorizations, please visit www.azdeq.gov/environ/air/smoke/index.html.

Information about prescribed fire projects on the Kaibab National Forest can be obtained through the following sources:
InciWeb: inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/5922/
Kaibab National Forest Website: www.fs.usda.gov/kaibab
Kaibab National Forest Fire Information Phone Line (928) 635-8311.

For information about air quality and health awareness visit bit.ly/SmokeHealthAwareness

South Canyon Trail on North Kaibab Ranger District closed until spring

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FREDONIA — Fire officials are extending the South Canyon Trail closure on the North Kaibab Ranger District of the Kaibab National Forest through at least spring 2019 for both public and firefighter safety.

The trail, which is located in the Saddle Mountain Wilderness, is in the area burned by the Cat Fire this summer, and fire managers are concerned about the hazards that fire-weakened trees would potentially pose to hikers. The trail will remain closed to allow for safe and efficient restoration work in the area by Forest Service crews.

“We simply need more time before we can consider the trail safe for hikers,” said North Zone Fire Management Officer Peter Goetzinger. “A good solid winter should give us that. We anticipate opening the trail back up in the spring.”

Once it is determined safe to do so, the trail will be reopened for public use.

Trail Closure: South Canyon Trail #6, Saddle Mountain Wilderness, North Kaibab Ranger District

There are no other closures in effect in the area.

To contact the North Kaibab Ranger District office, call (928) 643-7395.

Kaibab Forest

Kaibab National Forest information is also available through the following sources:

Kaibab National Forest Website: www.fs.usda.gov/kaibab
Twitter: www.twitter.com/KaibabNF
Facebook: www.facebook.com/KaibabNF
Flickr (photos): http://bit.ly/KaibabNFPhotos

Pile burning continues on North Kaibab Ranger District

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FREDONIA — North Zone fire managers continue planning for pile burning this winter, targeting areas across the district as conditions allow, but initially focusing on higher elevation areas and within the vicinity of Jacob Lake.

These piles are typically composed of vegetative materials, commonly called slash, such as tops, limbs, branches, brush, and other recently cut miscellaneous materials resulting from forest management activities such as thinning, pruning, timber harvesting, and wildfire hazard mitigation. Upon arranging slash into compact, teepee-shapes and allowing the piles to dry, fire managers burn the piles during safe burning conditions, generally after a snowfall or significant wetting-rain events.

“With recent significant moisture continuing to blanket the Kaibab Plateau, fuel moistures continue to rise making it too wet for broadcast burning,” said North Zone Prescribed Fire and Fuels Technician Dominic Ali. “So we have switched gears and begun targeting the brush and slash piles resulting from fuels reduction and mechanical thinning projects over the last few years. By reducing these hazardous fuels, we can help reduce the threat of future high severity, high-intensity wildfires.”

Desired Objectives: Fire managers have recently accomplished approximately 130 acres of pile burning within the vicinity of DeMotte Park, and plan to target an additional 2,000 acres as conditions allow.

Smoke: During ignitions, motorists are cautioned that smoke may be present on roadways in short durations, but is generally expected to have minimal impact. Pile burn operations require moisture in the surrounding vegetation and as such typically produce lighter smoke than a prescribed broadcast burn.

Safety: Areas anticipated to be impacted by smoke include AZ Highway 67, Forest Road 22, Forest Road 611, Kaibab Lodge, and the North Rim Country Store. Motorists are reminded to use caution, drive slowly, turn on headlights, and avoid stopping in areas where fire personnel is working. As a reminder, all prescribed burning is subject to approval by the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality and appropriate weather conditions. To view prescribed burn authorizations, visit http://www.azdeq.gov/environ/air/smoke/index.html.

Fire information: Additional information is made available through the following:

InciWeb: https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/6237/
Website: www.fs.usda.gov/kaibab
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KaibabNF/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/KaibabNF
Kaibab National Forest Fire Information Phone Line (928) 635-8311.