Smoke may be visible west of Carson City around Spooner Summit beginning Monday when U.S. Forest Service fuels management crews continue prescribed fire operations in several locations around Lake Tahoe.
The prescribed fires could continue through the week and the weekend if weather, staffing, and conditions allow. Besides Spooner fuels management crews will likely be assigned to the Luther Pass Campground off of Highway 89 S near South Lake Tahoe.
On the West Shore, operations may take place off of Tahoe Park Heights Drive in Ward Canyon, the west side of Highway 89 N near Tahoma, and near D. L. Bliss State Park. Locations may vary due to changing conditions, according to a U.S. Forest Service news release.
All prescribed fire projects are conducted in accordance with an approved prescribed fire burn plan. Burn plans describe specific conditions under which operations are conducted including the weather, number of personnel, opportunities to minimize smoke impacts, and available burn days. This information is used to decide when and where to burn.
Smoke from prescribed fire may continue for several days after the initial ignition. Smoke that settles in low lying areas in the morning usually lifts out of the area during normal daytime heating. All prescribed fires are monitored regularly for burning and smoke dispersal and action is taken to mitigate concerns as they arise. The Forest Service makes every effort to conduct prescribed fire operations during weather patterns that carry smoke away from communities.
Last summer’s wildfires serve as a reminder of the importance of fuels reduction and that smoke produced during a prescribed fire is less intense and of shorter duration than that of a wildfire. For more information on prescribed fire and smoke management tips, go here.
Forest Service staff will post road signs around the areas affected by the prescribed fire, send email notifications, and update the local fire information line at 530-543-2600, #6. To receive prescribed fire notifications, send an email to pa_ltbmu@fs.fed.us.
To learn more about the efforts to reduce wildfire risks in the Tahoe Basin read the Lake Tahoe Basin Multi-jurisdictional Fuel Reduction Plan, go here.