The BLM plans to conduct prescribed burns in the Laguna Mountain
and Condon Peak areas of southern San Benito County and northern
Fresno County. Eighty to 300 acres will be burned in October and
November, weather permitting, according to the federal agency.
The Bureau of Land Management’s Hollister Field Office has added units in the Laguna Mountain area to acreage planned for controlled burns this fall, according to a press release from the BLM.
The BLM plans to conduct prescribed burns in the Laguna Mountain and Condon Peak areas of southern San Benito County and northern Fresno County. Eighty to 300 acres will be burned in October and November, weather permitting, according to the federal agency.
Certain weather conditions – temperature, humidity, precipitation and wind – must be met for the prescribed burn to take place and control smoke. The prescribed burn will be conducted safely when the wind speeds are low and the weather is within the target ranges. It will be postponed if the right conditions are not met, the BLM says.
The goal of the prescribed burn will be improve wildlife habitat and reduce hazard fuels (brush) in the area. The mosaic burn pattern will increase native ecosystems, improve water quality of the watershed, and help provide for public and firefighter safety, according to the BLM.
“In addition this will help prevent an uncontrolled wildfire in the future by creating a fire break in which a wildland fire will run out of fuel and be easier to contain. Prescribed burning is in accordance with the National Fire Plan to protect life and property, reduce fuel loadings and improve wildlife habitat,” said Mike Chiodini, BLM Hollister fire mitigation specialist, in the press release.
BLM will conduct the prescribed burn in cooperation with other agencies and landowners including the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, CalFire, the National Park Service and others.
For more information contact Chiodini at (831) 630-5029, or visit the BLM Hollister Field Office, 20 Hamilton Court in Hollister.
