Prescribed fire projects planned across Flathead Forest
Nick Aschenwald, with the Montana DNRC, uses a drip torch to ignite bunch grass during a prescribed burn at Lone Pine State Park in Kalispell on Thursday, April 7, 2022. Held in conjunction with Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks, the prescribed fire is aimed at benefiting the park's grassland habitat, including native plants and the wildlife species that frequent the area.(Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
Prescribed fire projects on the Flathead National Forest area planned this spring as weather, fuel conditions and air quality conditions allow.
Burns are planned on the Swan Lake, Tally Lake, Hungry Horse and Glacier View, and the Spotted Bear ranger districts, spanning Flathead County.
“It doesn’t necessarily mean we will do all of these projects, but if possible there are the ones that we would like to accomplish,” Ivy Gehling, the executive assistant with the Flathead National Forest, told the Inter Lake.
According to a Flathead Forest media release, the projects will follow Montana Air quality standards and are coordinated with the Montana Department of Environmental Quality to reduce the impacts of smoke.
Many of the burns are smaller in size and will probably not be visible from Kalispell, according to Gehling.
There are a few that may garner attention though.
The Stovepipe 903 operation will be highly visible from Kalispell and the surrounding areas as it is located on the north side of Mountain Meadow Road on the west side of the Flathead Valley. The intent with the fire is to improve the control of wildfires and reduce fuels closer to the city.
Smoke from this burn will be visible from various places in the valley.
Another proposed project will take place within the Blacktail Mountain area west of Lakeside and south of Kila, where broadcast burning in timber harvest units will be used to reduce fuels and encourage vegetation regeneration and wildlife habitat improvement.
Other projects include slash pile burning across the area, timber harvests and broadcast burning in previously treated timber harvest units, and prescribed burns on steep slopes in the Hungry Horse and Glacier View districts to reduce fire hazards, prepare the site for regeneration and encourage diversity, the Flathead Forest media release noted.
Tally Lake Ranger District has some projects that could be seen from the valley, as well. The Oettiker 3 project in Star Meadow, approximately 14 miles west of Whitefish, will be burned to consume the dead fuels created from an initial 2016 fire. A project southwest of Olney – Burnt Grouse 2.0 – will be burned to reduce fuels, as well.
“This is what we might be able to accomplish this spring,” Gehling said. “Whether or not we burn them really depends on weather and field conditions.”
For more information, contact the appropriate ranger station. For information on ignition times and dates, Gehling recommends the Flathead Forest’s Facebook page. It will be updated regularly throughout the fire season, Gehling said.
Reporter Kate Heston can be reached at kheston@dailyinterlake.com or 758-4459.