Fire associations growing in state

Liability is another reason at the top of that list, said John Weir, Oklahoma State University Research Range superintendent.

Oklahoma’s farmers, who are now averaging 57 years old, are struggling to manage rangeland where just breaking even with the current rate of infestation would require controlling an estimated 300,000 acres a year.

Reliable figures from USDA show the encroachment of cedar is increasing in the state at an estimated 762 acres a day.

To counter this spread, a number of Oklahoma landowners have been forming or joining prescribed burning associations since 2001.

“People are realizing that fire is the most economical method of control, at least on the smaller trees,” said Weir, who conducts training and research in the use of prescribed fire.

Oklahoma presently has 10 prescribed burn associations, covering 18 counties, with over 200 members.

A prescribed fire association is a partnership of landowners and concerned citizens formed to conduct prescribed burns. Associations address one of the biggest issues in conducting prescribed burns, by providing the amount of labor needed.

Working together also allows a group to combine equipment and trained people to work safely and lower the cost of liability insurance.

Weir said burn associations are not a new idea.  They are all about neighbor helping neighbor.

“In these associations we have started every year, there are more older men and women involved.  Associations bring together that pool of neighbors, the way it used to be, and the way it ought to be on the land,” Weir said.  “You bring a lot of younger people in that can maybe do some of the more strenuous type work on the fire line.  Everybody has a role and a responsibility,” he said.

Weir said Oklahoma habitat is adapted to fire and historically Native Americans knew how to use fire to benefit themselves and the land they depended on to survive.

“There is nothing that can be done on the land that will mimic fire,” Weir said.  “Fire puts nutrients back into the soil.  Many plant species even require fire to reproduce.  And many of our habitats in Oklahoma require fire.”

For more than 100 years the suppression and exclusion of fire in our landscape has resulted in a decline in the quality of natural resources, and cost taxpayers millions of dollars annually to fight wildfires from the resulting fuel build up.

Better control helps landowners as well as communities, Weir said.  Urban areas utilizing prescribed burning will benefit from better water quality and higher quantity issues, reduced pollen count and a safer situation for firemen who deal with grassfires, he said.

Holding a meeting of interested citizens and key members of the community including landowners, lessees, Oklahoma Cooperative Extension Service, state and federal land management agencies and local fire departments, is the initial step in the organization of a burn association, Weir said.

Oklahoma Cooperative Extension Service has a fact sheet (F-2880) with information and guidelines for forming burn associations that can be acquired at http://www.osuextra.org or at your local county extension office.

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Graphic:

Oklahoma’s Prescribed Burning Associations

Janet F. Reeder BA, MS

Communication Specialist

Agricultural Communication Services

Oklahoma State University

142 Printing Services

405.744.3651

janet.reeder@okstate.edu

Oklahoma State University, U.S. Department of Agriculture, State and Local Governments Cooperating: The Oklahoma Cooperative Extension Service offers its programs to all eligible persons regardless of race, color, national origin, religion, gender, age, disability, or status as a veteran, and is an equal opportunity employer.