Planned burn set for Monday around the Mill Creek Watershed
By Terry Murry on Sunday, September 29th, 2024 in Columbia Basin News More Top Stories
PENDLETON — (News release from the Umatilla National Forest) In an effort to reduce hazardous fuels surrounding the Mill Creek Municipal Watershed, Walla Walla Ranger District is planning to burn 335 acres of the Tiger Creek Prescribed Fire Project. Burn operations are expecting to start Sept. 30, 2024 (Monday), weather permitting, and is anticipated to take two or three days to complete.
Area residents along Mill Creek may experience short-duration smoke in the evenings and overnight while prescribed burning operations are underway, but smoke is not expected to extend into Walla Walla city limits. Access through the prescribed fire area will be restricted on Forest Service Road 65 and Indian Ridge Trail. Temporary closures may be needed during burn operations for the safety of the public and prescribed-fire personnel.
The Tiger Creek Prescribed Fire Project (Tiger Creek Project) aims to protect the Mill Creek Municipal Watershed by using prescribed fire to reduce excessive fuel buildup along the southwest portion of the watershed boundary, approximately 13 miles east of Walla Walla, WA. The District Ranger and fire managers are working closely with our partners in the City of Walla Walla, rural fire departments, Washington Department of Natural Resources and Oregon Department of Forestry to implement the Tiger Creek Prescribed fire through an “all hands, all lands” management approach.
Approximately 160 acres of prescribed burning was successfully accomplished in the Tiger Creek Project area in 2022. Each prescribed burn goes through meticulous planning and preparation to ensure each burn operations meet prescriptive conditions that provide multiple benefits to resources. The Umatilla National Forest also works closely with the Oregon Department of Forestry and Washington State Department of Natural Resources in accordance with each State’s Smoke Management Plans. All burns are monitored until a season-ending rain or snow occurs.
For questions about the Tiger Creek Project, please contact Walla Walla Ranger District at 509-522-6290.
A prescribed fire program provides a source of frequent, low-intensity fires that are essential to keeping a forest healthy and to reduce the risk of uncharacteristic wildfire caused by excessive fuel buildup. It is an effective tool for removing excessive amounts of brush, shrubs and trees, while also encouraging the growth of native vegetation. More prescribed fire information for the Malheur, Umatilla, and Wallowa-Whitman National Forests is available to the public on a tri-forest online map. The map is labeled and color-coded to show each burn unit’s status: planned, active, or completed. Additionally, forest users can view other features including current and past-year burn units, National Forest boundaries and State wildlife management boundaries.
To learn more about current and planned prescribed fires in the area, please visit:
· Online prescribed fire map for the Malheur, Umatilla, and Wallowa-Whitman National Forests
· Blue Mountain Prescribed Fire Council Blog
· Blue Mountain Interagency Dispatch Center
· John Day Interagency Dispatch Center and Burns Interagency Communication Center
Additional information about the Umatilla National Forest is available at https://www.fs.usda.gov/umatilla.
Photo: Prescribed fire operations being conducted in Tiger Creek Prescribed Fire Project area, Oct. 10, 2022, provided by Umatilla National Forest
