Safety vital due to high wildfire danger
From our weekly issue dated April 30, 2008
This is the fourth consecutive year that Gov. Kulongoski has declared Sunday, May 4 through Saturday, May 10 as Wildfire Awareness Week, set aside each spring to remind everyone that we live in a beautiful, but high-wildfire risk state.
Said the Keep Oregon Green Association (KOGA), “Living here comes with a price. And if we’re going to ‘Keep Oregon Green,’ we need to do a better job of acting responsibly when living in or recreating in the forests or rangelands.
“And speaking of being responsible, backyard debris burning, which includes burn piles and burn barrels, is the
leading careless human behavior that causes wildfires in Oregon (273 fires burned 1,828 acres during 2007).
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“Spring is the perfect time to remove dead vegetation and limb-up trees to
reduce the threat from wildfire,” said KOGA. “By following a few simple steps to get rid of brush and yard debris, we can all rest a bit easier. KOGA recommends chipping debris. But if you must burn, do so responsibly.”
Before burning, check with Illinois Valley Fire District at 592-2121 to see if a permit is required.
In many rural areas, pile burning and burn barrels is a practical way to get rid of debris such as branches, brush cuttings, needles and leaves. And with proper site preparation and forethought, people can burn this sort of debris with reasonable safety, said KOGA.
*Pick a site where flames, radiant heat and airborne embers won’t set nearby vegetation afire. Horizontal clearance should be twice the height of the pile. The ground should be scraped to mineral soil to prevent the fire from going outside the pile.
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*Vertical clearance needs to be at least three times the height of the pile. A burning pile of tree branches will send visible flames several feet into the air above the pile, but the invisible heat influence will go up even higher. Make sure that there are no overhanging tree branches and no power lines anywhere above the pile.
*Keep burn piles small, and make sure that your burn barrel has adequate ventilation and a one-fourth-inch mesh screen cover. Put the smallest twigs and branches -- which will ignite quickly -- on the bottom of the pile. Keep leaves, needles and bark in an adjacent pile so that they can be added to the burning pile after a vigorous heat source has been created.
It is illegal to burn plastic, tires and just about anything else that isn't from a tree or shrub.
*Never burn on windy days. Make sure that your charged garden hose reaches
all the way around the burn site. Keep the perimeter hosed down during the
burning process. Also, have a shovel near to where you'll be burning.
*Taking the time to plan an open burning project and equipping yourself with
basic fire suppression tools before igniting the material will dramatically reduce the chance of a burn pile fire getting out of control.
For more information on safe debris burning and other important wildfire prevention tips, phone IVFD or visit KeepOregonGreen.org.
