The Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection will burn over 100 acres of forest in April. This is to maintain habitat and plant diversity and reduce the risk of future brush fires.
Five locations in Eastern Connecticut and one in Hartford County will undergo the ‘prescribed burning.’ They are located at the James L. Goodwin State Forest in Hampton, the Pachaug State Forest on Pratt Road in Voluntown, the Shetucket Barren in Voluntown, the Quinebaug River Wildlife Management Area in Plainfield, the Suffield Wildlife Management Area in Suffield, the Mansfield Hollow State Park in Mansfield, and the Belding Wildlife Management Area in Vernon.
Tom Trask, a forest protection supervisor for DEEP, explained why it’s needed.
“It takes care of the leaf litter and needle casts within the top couple inches of the soil,” Trask said. “The goal is not to go extremely deep or nuke the area as you’ll see during general wildfires instead of prescribed burning. This breaks down an area, creates charcoal and essentially changes the chemical compound of the soil to help produce better material for seeds to grow.”
Trask said the prescribed burning will take place only during the day and will depend on weather conditions. DEEP will notify people in the area so they know what to expect.
“We post it in as many places as we can to let the public know that we’re doing it,” Trask said. “And you’re going to see, during these conditions, because we burn in an unstable atmosphere, our goal is to have the smoke lift and rise away from the areas so we’re not affecting neighborhoods or creating any other issues for the local people. The columns are generally pretty prevalent.”
Signs will be posted in areas where fires will be set.
