Prescribed fires planned in Swan Lake District

The Daily Inter Lake

The Swan Lake Ranger District is planning a series of prescribed fires in the next week, if weather conditions are favorable.

The project areas are above the East Shore of Flathead Lake and along the Swan Mountain Range south of Bigfork. The burns are expected to produce smoke that should be visible from places around the Flathead Valley.

The burns are targeted at upper-elevation conifer stands and shrub fields to "improve forest health and reduce the likelihood of intense wildfire as well as increase forage for wildlife," says a press release from the district.

The planned projects include:

. The 320 Parker Burn and the 86-acre Glen Burn, both roughly two miles northeast of Yellow Bay.

. The 650-acre Orvis Evans burn and the 200-acre Sixmile Burn, both about six miles north of the town of Swan Lake.

. The 450-acre Bond Burn, about five miles north of Swan Lake.

All of the projects are in areas that have historically experienced infrequent, moderate-intensity fires, but aggressive fire suppression has altered that historic cycle.

The burns, and their locations, are designed to be controlled and not escape as wildfires.

According to the Forest Service, the projects are in compliance with Montana Air Quality Standards and are coordinated with the Montana Department of Environmental Quality.