Missoula BLM plans controlled burns near Potomac
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(MISSOULA, Mont.) – The Bureau of Land Management’s Missoula Field Office is preparing to burn landing piles associated with several timber sales and stewardship projects this spring in the Lower Blackfoot River area.
The piles are near Belmont Creek and Highway 200 near Potomac. Smoke may be visible periodically starting in early March. When weather and fuel conditions are favorable, multiple landing piles will be lit and each of these piles will produce smoke for several days.
These landing piles are the result of timber sales and thinning treatments that will create what was historically more natural conditions characterized by large-diameter Douglas fir, Ponderosa pine, and western larch with intermittent openings of forbs, shrubs, and bunch grasses. These piles contain non-merchantable slash generated from vegetation treatments and are a critical part of reducing fuel loading in the area which decreases the potential for a high severity wildfire.
For more information about these controlled burns, contact BLM Fire Management Specialist Michael Albritton at the Missoula Field Office at (406) 329-3914.
The BLM manages more than 245 million acres of public land located primarily in 12 western states, including Alaska, on behalf of the American people. The BLM also administers 700 million acres of sub-surface mineral estate throughout the nation. Our mission is to sustain the health, diversity, and productivity of America’s public lands for the use and enjoyment of present and future generations.