prescribed burn without being a certified prescribed burner if the landowner
is burning a tract of forestland of 50 acres or less owned by that landowner
and is following all conditions established in a prescription prepared by a
certified prescribed burner. Prior to conducting a prescribed burn, the
landowner or the landowner's agent must obtain an open‐burning permit
from the North Carolina Forest Service of the Department of Agriculture and
Consumer Services. This open‐burning permit must remain in effect
throughout the period of the prescribed burning.
ISSUE
DSS‐2
Compatibility Assessment
The landscape at DCR, similar to much of Eastern North Carolina, has
historically experienced periodic wildfires. The intensity and frequency of
wildfires has influenced the habitat structure and vegetative composition of
the region. An unintended byproduct of historic fire suppression tactics and
techniques over the past fifty years is the heavy fuel loading extant in the
forested wetlands throughout DCR and, in particular, adjacent to the Range
impact areas. The DCR contains saturated peat soils but during periods of
drought can lead to a range wildfire reaching “conflagration” status due to
the high fuel loads and spreading underground making firefighting difficult
and lengthy. The forested areas surrounding the impact areas contain the
East Coast’s highest fuel loading per acre.
Findings
Pilots travelling along MTRs in the area around DCR are permitted to
fly at 500 feet AGL where smoke from prescribed burns can affect pilot
visibility.
Smoke from prescribed burns is typically short‐lived and the impact
may be variable on training in the MTRs or DCR depending on
atmospheric conditions such as wind and wind direction.
NOTAMs can be filed by Seymour Johnson AFB, by other controllers of
loc