Brownwood News – Texas A&M Forest Service, in cooperation with the Texas Army National Guard, plans to conduct a 3,700-acre prescribed burn at Camp Bowie Feb. 25 through 28. Texas A&M Forest Service has been monitoring weather conditions and has scheduled the burn when the weather and fuel conditions meet the prescription.

At the Camp Bowie Training Center, prescribed burns are used as a management tool in natural areas to improve habitat for wildlife by restoring native prairies and grasslands.

Prescribed burns are also conducted to reduce the amount of available fuels, such as juniper, mesquite, invasive plants and grasses, understory growth and dead trees that accumulate naturally and from storm events. By decreasing the amount of available fuels, prescribed burns reduce the chance for a potentially destructive wildfire to occur.

The Camp Bowie Prescribed Burn Plan defines the conditions under which a prescribed burn may be conducted, considering wind speeds and direction, air temperature, relative humidity and fuel moisture levels. The plan also guides fire crew members in managing burns to prevent them from escaping into adjacent properties and to minimize the effect of smoke in nearby residential areas. 

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Light smoke and the odor of smoke can affect a large area near a burn. Smoke is often a nuisance but does not generally pose a health risk. Personnel focus their attention on minimizing smoke impacts in adjacent neighborhoods and along the roadways where the impacts have the potential to be greater.

Texas A&M Forest Service conducts prescribed burns on state and public lands. Agency personnel involved have undergone training and met national wildland firefighting certification standards.