Balcones Canyonlands is a United States Fish and Wildlife Service National Wildlife Refuge composed of 58 tracts of land totaling 21,436 acres. Prescribed fire is used on the Refuge as a land management tool. The goal of burning is to enhance wildlife habitat while reducing the possibility of damaging wildfires.
Prescribed burning reduces the accumulation of hazardous fuels near resources of value and promotes the growth of native species that have evolved in an area with natural fire occurrence. Prescribed burning, under an approved plan with adequate resources, is the best way to prevent loss from wildfire while improving habitat for our area’s unique endangered species. Balcones Canyonlands introduced a controlled burn program beginning in 1997 and has burned a total of 19,011 acres on the Refuge including 16 burns for 1933 acres in 2005. All burns are conducted using plans developed by qualified and experienced fire management professionals.
Through cooperative efforts between private landowners and the Refuge, 10 prescribed burns were completed for 1283 acres on private lands. These private land prescribed burns accomplish the same objectives for resource benefits and hazard fuel reduction as prescribed burns implemented on the Refuge. These cooperative efforts are continuing and increasing every year.
Fire management staff at Balcones monitor weather and fuel conditions to ensure that burns achieve the best results with minimum smoke impact on local residents. Smoke from burns is visible from surrounding communities.
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| Photo Credit: USFWS |
With a combination of mechanical brush reduction and burning, the Refuge hopes to benefit the area by opening habitat lost to invasive vegetation and by removing potentially hazardous wildfire fuels. Balcones plans to continue prescribed burns on established fire units on a rotational basis while adding additional areas that will benefit from fire introduction.
SUMMER BURNS PLANNED:
You must have Google Earth installed in order to view this file:
Click here to view summer burn units in Google Earth. (click on the specific unit to view individual burn unit map, it may take a moment to download.)
Gainer South- Unit A is the only burn map attached to the specific unit at this time.
Simons South burn unit was burned 7/23/2009.
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