Home › AK Fire Info › Burning operations planned on Donnelly Training Area to reduce wildfire threat near Delta Junction

Burning operations planned on Donnelly Training Area to reduce wildfire threat near Delta Junction

By BLM Alaska Fire Service on April 9, 2024

FAIRBANKS, ALASKA – Starting as early as Sunday, April 14, the Bureau of Land Management Alaska Fire Service (BLM AFS), in coordination with the U.S. Army Garrison Alaska, will implement prescribed fires in the Donnelly Training Area. The prescribed burning may continue through May 1, as weather conditions allow.

The areas identified for the prescribed burning are:

East of the Delta River – Several locations between 3-15 miles south of Delta Junction.
West of the Delta River – About 15 miles southwest of Delta Junction.

Prescribed burns are fires that are intentionally set under controlled conditions to remove dry and dead grass and lower the risk of wildfires that could impact nearby communities, resources and facilities. Removing the hazardous vegetation in the spring under more moderate conditions allows for the greatest degree of control and the lowest risk for negative impacts, such as smoke.

Taking these preventative measures now will decrease the fire danger around military training targets used during the summer when conditions are hotter, the surrounding woods are dry and more receptive to burning, and firefighting resources to deal with a large wildfire may be limited. Fires will be ignited only when favorable weather conditions are present and forecasted. An approved burn plan is in place that includes authorization from the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation (ADEC) Division of Air Quality.

While smoke from prescribed fires may be visible from various points in the surrounding communities, their potential impact on the public is considered at all stages of prescribed fire planning. The BLM AFS is working with the ADEC and the National Weather Service to monitor smoke conditions and to ensure compliance with local, state and federal air quality regulations. There are also procedures in place to halt ignitions if conditions become unfavorable. Trained personnel will monitor the prescribed fire areas until the fires are out.

For more information contact BLM AFS Public Affairs Specialist Beth Ipsen at (907) 356-5510 or the Yukon Fire Dispatch Center at (907) 356-5555. Download a PDF map of the training area and sections scheduled for prescribed burning found at this link.

Map of an area near Delta Junction with diagonal lines indicating areas that are targeted for prescribed burning in 2024. — Map of the Donnelly Training Area near Delta Junction showing the areas that are targeted for prescribed burning in the upcoming weeks.

-BLM-

Bureau of Land Management, Alaska Fire Service, P.O. Box 35005 1541 Gaffney Road, Fort Wainwright, Ak 99703

Need public domain imagery to complement news coverage of the BLM Alaska Fire Service in Alaska? Visit our Flickr channel!
Learn more at www.blm.gov/AlaskaFireService, and on Facebook and Twitter.

The Bureau of Land Management Alaska Fire Service (AFS) located at Fort Wainwright, Alaska, provides wildland fire suppression services for over 240 million acres of Department of the Interior and Native Corporation Lands in Alaska. In addition, AFS has other statewide responsibilities that include: interpretation of fire management policy; oversight of the BLM Alaska Aviation program; fuels management projects; and operating and maintaining advanced communication and computer systems such as the Alaska Lightning Detection System. AFS also maintains a National Incident Support Cache with a $18.1 million inventory. The Alaska Fire Service provides wildland fire suppression services for America’s “Last Frontier” on an interagency basis with the State of Alaska Department of Natural Resources, USDA Forest Service, National Park Service, Bureau of Indian Affairs, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and the U.S. Military in Alaska.