The Apache-Sitgreaves National Forests, Lakeside Ranger District will continue a prescribed burn within the Goodman unit of the Los Burros broadcast burn area, south of Vernon beginning June 3, 2016.
The Goodman Unit is about two miles south of Vernon, along Apache County Road 3140. The burn is surrounded by Forest Service Road 2, Apache County Road 3140 and hand or dozer lines. The legal description is: T9N, R25E Sections 3, 4, 5 and 9, T10N, R25E, Sections 33 and 34. In early May, the district completed approximately 460 acres of burning within the project area. Fire management proposes to burn an estimated 640 additional acres to complete the project.
Ignition may last several days, with daily smoke impact anticipated within area drainages. Smoke will be visible in the local area, from Arizona State Highway 260, and U.S. Highway 60, in Round Valley, Vernon and Show Low. Please visit the New Mexico 5-3-1 at https://nmtracking.org/environ_exposure/fire-and-smoke/ to assess the air quality in your area.
Fire plays a beneficial role in maintaining the ecological stability of many landscapes and the FS is working with partners to restore healthy, resilient, fire-adapted 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. Thinning, prescribed fires, and managing wildfires to achieve natural resource management objectives can help prevent uncharacteristic wildfires with minimal impacts to air quality while smoke from uncharacteristic wildfires may pose significant risks to public health and safety.
Objectives of this project are to maintain and protect ponderosa pine stands while providing browse for wildlife. This prescribed fire is in cooperation with the Arizona State Forestry, Vernon Fire Department, Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation and Carlock Ranch. This will provide protection for the adjacent private land as well as the community of Vernon. Crews will be on scene from ignition until there is no longer a threat of escape from the project boundaries.
Questions or concerns contact the Lakeside Ranger District at (928) 368-2100 or by calling 311 or 928-333-3412. Also, check out our website at: www.fs.usda.gov/asnf . For more information please visit the ASNFs web site at www.fs.usda.gov/asnf and follow ASNFs on Facebook at www.facebook.com/apachesitgreavesnfs or on Twitter at @AS_NFs.