WILMINGTON, N.C. (WECT) – If you see smoke while driving around Wilmington, it could be from a controlled burn in the longleaf pine forests.
The Nature Conservancy has begun its controlled burns for the season. The burns began mid-January and will go until May.
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“Specific to the Wilmington area, we have a lot of rare and endangered plant species that all rely on fire. So obviously the the number one thing that people talk about is the Venus flytrap. And that’s awesome. It’s a unique plant that only grows around Wilmington, and it absolutely needs fire to thrive,” said Nathan Burmester, Coastal Plain Stewardship manager and burn boss for TNC.
He says that controlled burns help clear out shrubs and vegetation. Burmester says that added vegetation can be dangerous for homes in wooded areas and can cause more wildfires.
According to TNC, controlled burns also help provide habitat for animals and reduce the number of ticks. Burmester says TNC is not the only agency that does controlled burns in the Wilmington area. Agencies like the Wildlife Resource Commission and the North Carolina Forest Service also conduct in controlled burns.
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“There’s a lot of people, a lot of different agencies all working together to accomplish these burns. And it’s really cool because one agency can’t do it all. And so it’s a real group effort, which is awesome,” said Burmester.
He says many detailed plans are put into action before any fire is started. TNC does test fires on small areas of land to see how the fire will burn before the controlled burning starts. He says factors like weather, wind speed and humidity also play a role.
“Relative humidity. So it kind of goes without saying, but a drier day, you know, a relative humidity of 25% or something, that fuels the vegetation is going to burn a lot hotter, and the fire will be a lot harder to control. So we typically pick days that are a little bit, I don’t know somewhere in like the 30 to 50 RH frame period. But it depends a lot on our objectives, and what fuels we’re burning,” said Burmester.
Each controlled burn has specific goals experts seek to accomplish. Burmester says January to March is considered dormant season when it comes to controlled burns. March to April is mostly known as wildfire season, and the time period after April is considered growing season.
“All the plants and animals are adapted to fire during the growing season. And so that’s when you see those really cool fire effects of the Wiregrass seeding up speed heads and amazing recovery. You burn it one day, and literally like three days later, the Wiregrass and other plants are already coming back. It’s amazing,” said Burmester.
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However, controlled burns also bring smoke to certain parts of the Wilmington area.
“Controlled burns are a really important part of maintaining our ecosystem here in southeastern North Carolina. Longleaf pine really historically covering a majority of the coast. Today, unfortunately, we only have a small percentage of that left. So anything we can do to help maintain it and help for future generations I think is really important,” said Cerri Allen, a coastal advocate.
For those concerned about safety when it comes to controlled burns, Burmester says TNC has plans for every situation.
“We do hundreds and hundreds, thousands of burns that go according to plan with no problems at all,” said Burmester.
He also says during controlled burn season it is important to drive with caution when you see any smoke.
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Source: https://t-tees.com
Category: WHY
