Item 3: PH on Ordinance Prescribed Wetland Management Burning

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Oregon Department of Agriculture are involved in determining whether burning can be conducted on a given day and site. Prescribed burns are conducted only under the authority of an approved prescribed burn plan, which identifies specific parameters under which the burn may be accomplished. Elements of the prescribed burn plan include: 1.The identification of the resource/prescribed fire objectives. 2.The prescription "window" under which the burn can be accomplished, which includes Temperature, Relative Humidity, Wind speed and direction and the conditions of the fuel to be consumed. 3.A communications plan. 4.A notification plan (for emergency services and interagency information). 5.An ignition and holding plan, which defines specifically how the area will be ignited and what resources will be used to suppress the fire along the perimeter. 6.An equipment and staffing plan which defines specifically the amount of staff that will be needed, the amount and type of equipment that will be used in the ignition and holding actions. 7.A Contingency Plan, identifying the amount and type of resources that will be on site, in addition to ignition and holding resources, in event an escapement occurs. Prior to ignition, all required permits are obtained and all jurisdictional interagency fire departments will be notified of the proposed burn. Immediately after the burn, aggressive “mop- up” is implemented to extinguish all smoldering embers, and if necessary, an infrared scan of the area will occur to detect any latent heat. 5.1.Safety precautions All of the personnel that are utilized on the prescribed burns have received extensive training in the use and application of fire in wild land and urban interface situations. In some cases, a cadre of prescribed burn teams is utilized as instructors for the wild land training courses that are presented to structural firefighters. The personnel used on the prescribed burns utilize the latest technology in firefighting equipment. Whenever possible, burning will be done adjacent to roads and trails. In instances where roads and trails are not feasible, a mowed line will be used as a holding line with proper water/foam support. The prescribed burn area is evaluated well in advance to ascertain the location of the fire lines, holding areas, water sources, and values at risk. A thorough safety briefing for all participants is conducted prior to ignition. By conducting the briefing, all personnel are informed of the sequence of events that will occur as the burn progresses and radio frequencies are verified. All weather parameters that are required by the appropriate agencies are verified. This is accomplished by launching helium balloons to verify transport wind direction and by obtaining the meteorological conditions at the site. The weather conditions are documented each fifteen minutes throughout the duration of the prescribed burn. In the event traffic control is Page 3