Here’s why you might see smoke in south Thurston County on Wednesday
The public may see smoke rising near Littlerock on Wednesday due to a prescribed burn in the area.
The burn is planned to start sometime from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Mima Mounds Natural Area, which is near the intersection of Mima Road and Boudreaux Road, according to a news release from Ecostudies Institute, a scientific non-profit organization.
The institute planned the burn with the Washington state Department of Natural Resources and Center for Natural Lands Management. About one to three small burns are expected to be ignited to control invasive shrubs, restore prairie habitat for rare species and reduce fuels, per the release.
“Prairie, Gary oak and Ponderosa pine habitats in the South Sound are highly fire dependent ecosystems that have adapted to frequent low intensity fires. Invasive plants like Scotch broom create undesirable fuel loads that can be reduced with intentional fire,” the release says.
It will take about 30-50 minutes to ignite each burn and there may be some “minimal residual smoldering,” according to the release. The institute expects the wind to carry smoke west toward Capitol State Forest.
The release cautions that the plans for the prescribed burn may change depending on actual conditions on the ground.
The institute says its burn program has participated on more than 900 burns that did not result in a wildfire. Nationally qualified firefighters conduct prescribed burns with enough equipment to anticipate contingencies, per the release.
The public can report nuisance smoke by contacting Dave Wilderman, a natural areas program ecologist with the WA DNR, at 360-628-1492 or david.walderman@dnr.wa.gov.
This story was originally published October 2, 2024 at 10:14 AM.
