Springerville, AZ –January 24, 2018; —The Apache-Sitgreaves National Forests’ Springerville Ranger District will be burning slash piles January 25, 2018. The piles are located west of Greer and Forest Road 87. Scattered piles will be burned across roughly 41 acres of forest land. The slash piles are a product of a recent thinning project intended to reduce hazardous fuels adjacent to the community of Greer. Ignition is planned for one day only. Smoke may be visible in Greer, along State Highway 260, and Forest Road 87. In the interest of safety, forest visitors are reminded to use caution when traveling in the vicinity of the pile burn as smoke may reduce visibility in the area.

Prescribed burning provides many benefits and is essential to maintaining healthy forest ecosystems. It provides habitat diversity, recycles plant nutrients into the soil and encourages new growth for a variety of plants used by wildlife and livestock. Prescribed burning of forest ground fuels also reduces the threat of large scale wildfire impacts to private lands. Crews will be on scene from ignition until there is no longer a threat of escape from the project boundaries. Prescribed fire operations are subject to cancelation due to unfavorable weather conditions.

For questions or concerns please contact the Springerville Ranger District at (928) 333-6200, or dial 311 to reach the Northeastern Arizona Public Information System. Also, check out our website at www.fs.usda.gov/asnf or follow us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/apachesitgreavesnfs/