WILSON, Wyo. — Last week, the Bridger-Teton National Forest (BTNF) shared photos of crews doing work on Teton Pass west of Wilson.
“How quickly we go from suppressing fire to lighting fire here in the Forest Service,” the BTNF wrote on its Facebook.
Colder temperatures and snow on the ground makes it so that there’s little chance of a fire escaping, and U.S. Forest Service (USFS) fire crews are now burning slash piles of logs and limbs all across the BTNF.
According to BTNF, these smaller prescribed burns reduce fuel in the forest and the chance of devastating wildfires down the road. It also increases plant diversity; the USFS writes on its website that after many years of fire exclusion, an ecosystem that needs periodic fire becomes unhealthy when trees are stressed by overcrowding and fire-dependent species disappear.
A more diverse plant community also benefits many wildlife species with improved foraging.
The USFS confirms fire managers use prescribed fire to mimic the natural role of fire on the landscape with the ability to plan, control the conditions of the burn and minimize the smoke impacts.
