JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, Alaska -- Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson Fire and Emergency Services, the 11th Airborne Division, and the JBER-based Air Force Wildland Fire Support Module plan to conduct multiple controlled burns on JBER training lands beginning as early as May 4.
As conditions allow, prescribed burning will take place on the north and south Richardson Training Area ranges and drop zones until all units are complete or weather conditions degrade. The RTA North is between Knik Arm and Glenn Highway, northwest of Eagle River and south of Birchwood Airport. The RTA South ranges are east of Glenn Highway between Muldoon and Eagle River.
Prescribed burns are fires intentionally set under controlled conditions to reduce hazardous fuel loading and lower the risk of wildfire ignitions on the ranges that could impact nearby communities, resources, facilities, and military training. Removing hazardous fuels during the spring, when conditions are moderated, allows for the greatest degree of control and the lowest risk for negative impacts, such as smoke.
While smoke may be visible during prescribed fires from various points along the Glenn Highway in Anchorage, Eagle River and the Matanuska Valley, their potential impact on the public is considered at all stages of planning. JBER wildland fire mitigation crews work closely with the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation’s Division of Air Quality and the National Weather Service to mitigate potential impacts. Procedures are in place to halt ignitions if unfavorable conditions develop.
The exact timing of the prescribed fires will depend on weather conditions and range availability.
All prescribed burns are executed under ADEC Open Burn Approval AQ1483OBR11.
Members of the news media with questions should contact the 673d Air Base Wing Public Affairs Office, media section, at (907) 551-8995 or email jber.pa.mediaops@us.af.mil.
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