Agreement Narrative: Southern Blue Ridge Prescribed Burn Association
Primary Funder: Coalitions & Collaboratives, Inc. (COCO)
Location: Western North Carolina
Innovation: Our project will increase prescribed burning and reduce wildfire risk with private landowners in western North Carolina by engaging private landowners and coordinating a prescribed burn association (PBA). Our Southern Blue Ridge PBA will decrease the obstacles for private landowners to implement burns on their forest land by providing training opportunities, education and outreach events, providing shared personnel, materials, supplies, and equipment, and working with partner organizations and contractors to construct firebreaks, prepare prescribed burn plans, and implement prescribed burns on private lands. Technical and financial assistance will be provided by RGS & AWS’ Forest Wildlife Specialist in North Carolina to support landowners on planning and implementing prescribed burns and getting connected to cost-share funding from the United States Department of Agriculture Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS).
Impact: The project will result in 10 prescribed burn plans completed, 20 landowners that receive technical assistance, 50 acres prescribed fire implementation, 25 landowners reached through education and outreach events, and the purchase of 1 prescribed fire trailer.
Partners and Chapter Contributions: We will collaborate closely with the following partners providing match: North Carolina State University Extension, North Carolina Forest Service, Blue Ridge Resource and Conservation Development, University of Georgia, Conservation Corps North Carolina, Consortium of Appalachian Fire Managers and Scientists, The Nature Conservancy, Forest Stewards Guild, and Wildwood Consulting.
Provide COCO, NCSU, and Blue Ridge – RCD Logo in all communications.
Deliverables:
Completed Firescaping training event to help private forest landowners reduce wildfire risk on their properties. 10 private forest landowners attended event.
Outfitted a mobile fire equipment trailer with prescribed fire materials, supplies, and equipment for landowners and partner organizations to utilize in prescribed burn unit preparation and burn implementation.
Provided technical assistance to 35 private forest landowners, including forest management plans, prescribed burn plans, and home wildfire readiness assessments.
Completed 15 prescribed burn plans for private landowners.
Enrolled 76 landowners as members of the Southern Blue Ridge Prescribed Burn Association.
Complete 6 learn-and-burn events that engaged 29 landowners and provided training in prescribed fire.
Provided financial assistance to 13 landowners to implement active forest management treatments and prescribed fire implementation.
Prepared burn units for 11 landowners through fireline construction or fuel reduction treatments.
Implemented 292 acres of prescribed burning and mechanical fuel reduction treatments.
Young: 25-acres slashdown: Young Burn Photos:
Heath: 10-acres slashdown and rhodo control:
Dills: 15-acres slashdown
McGuire: 60-acres slashdown
Young: 15-acre slashdown
Blair: 20-acres rhododendron control
Ayers: 5-acres slashdown
Fant: 29-acres slashdown
Ramos: 5-acres slashdown
Kaduck: 44-acres prescribed fire
Puckett: 38-acres prescribe fire: Pucket Burn Photos
Ramos: 9-acres prescribed fire. Ramos Burn photos: Ramos burn
Celo: 3-acres prescribed fire
Collins: 9-acres. Collins Burn
Young: Prescribed burn on 8 acres: young burn
