By Janelle Walker
Throughout the state many fires are blazing out of control, but one fire is just being scheduled to start.
The Uinta National Forest Service scheduled the Cascade Springs region to burn sometime in mid-August as part of the Prescribed Fire Project II.
'We can''t give an actual date for when we''ll start the fire,' said Loyal Clark, a representative for the UNFS. 'We won''t ignite unless the wind conditions are perfect and the cloud conditions are right.'
According to the Uinta National Forest Service, the fire aims to create diversity in the vegetation, reduce hazardous fuel conditions that contribute to the risk and severity of wildfires, encourage regeneration of natural vegetation and restore the role of fire within the ecosystems.
Clark said the area has a lot of dead, dense oak stopping new vegetation from growing and creating a fire hazard.
'If lightning strikes, the fire would be very difficult to control,' Clark said. 'We''re starting it because it will be a fire that we can control.'
Fires create open spaces, reduce hazardous fuels and provide opportunities for wildlife to move in, she said.
Clark said the UNFS is planning to use a helicopter ping-pong approach for starting the fire where a helicopter will drop down balls that to ignite the region upon impact.
The fire is designated for a 3000-acre area, but crews will only burn different patches within the region.
Chuck Wentlender, fire management officer for the Uinta National Forest, said they have been planning the Cascade Springs fire for two years.
'We have had a lot of success with prescribed fires in the past,' he said. 'We actually haven''t had any fires not do what they''re supposed to.'
Two years ago, UNFS started the first Cascade Springs prescribed fire. Since then UNFS has been able to see good results from that fire, Wentlender said.
There is a lot of planning involved with fire projects such as this one, he said.
'One of the first things we do is send out a scoping letter to different groups and newspapers to give citizens and others a chance to voice questions and concerns,' Wentlender said.
UNFS crews already started taking fuel samples. Before the fire, crews will dig around the area selected for the burn.
Wentlender said crews would start the fire after receiving weather predictions and approval from smoke management.
Different techniques will be used to keep the fire under control.
Natural wildfires generally start at the bottom of regions and have a continuous source of fuel because they move upward. Fire crews would start the fire at the top to keep flame height and intensity low.