In an effort to restore the natural vegetation at Lake Fayetteville, the city is planning two prescribed burns to aid in prairie restoration, site preparation and reduce the threat of catastrophic wildfire.
The burns are planned for today and will take place on the dam and at approximately 12 acres north of the Environmental Study Center located on Lakeview Drive. The paved and nature trails from Veteran’s Memorial Park, west around to the Botanical Gardens will be closed from 11 a.m. until 4:00 p.m.
Oklahoma-based Chloeta Fire (CFI), a Native American-owned company providing wildland and prescribed fire consulting and contracting services, will plan and conduct both burns. “One of nature’s most destructive forces is also one of its most effective land management tools when safely and responsibly planned and carried out,” said Mark Masters, CFI Chief Executive Officer.
The personnel of CFI collectively possess many decades of prior public sector firefighting employment experience in addition to advanced industry qualifications and educational backgrounds in fields such as forestry, rangeland management, and wildlife ecology. A team of wildland fire professionals with extensive experience in the public sector will ensure that the burns are conducted with minimal impact to the public.
The burns will only be implemented under a strict set of weather and environmental parameters such as fuel, moisture, relative humidity and smoke dispersion indices.
City officials said citizens may see or smell smoke for less than one hour the day of the burn until ignition operations are complete.
For more closure information, call the city’s parks and recreation division at 479-444-3471.
