ORD — They sprayed and prepared to hit acres and acres of land with fire.
Prescription burns, like this one in Valley County, have been growing in popularity around the country as a way to treat land for ranching purposes.
It attracts firefighters from around the country looking to improve qualifications, like Upper-Michigan Peninsula resident Kyle Summers of the U.S. Forest Service. “What we’re doing here, how we’re actually firing things off, different tactics, and bring that back home,” he says.
“When we do some prescribed burning back home, we can use those same types of tactics burning some of our grass,” Summers adds.
Guys like Summers travel the country doing everything from fighting fires in California to honing them here. In Valley County, the target is Eastern Red Cedar Trees. The worry is, if this plant is allowed to grow, it will take acres and acres away from ranchers.
Still, the idea of using fire to control anything can make one wary. Ben Wheeler, of Pheasants Forever, helps orchestrate these burns and wants to change that mindset.
“A lot of these tree problems really didn’t start taking hold, when you talk to farmers and ranchers, until about 20, 25 years ago,” he explains. “So, it’s kind of this paradigm shift that we’re coming around to.”
“Most people understand the need to control trees, not all of them understand, or buy into, using fire,” Wheeler adds.
These fires are not only good for the landowner. Phil Dye runs a fire consulting company in California and is here in Nebraska working on this project. He points out that wildlife certainly stands to benefit.
“We’re increasing forage for grazing, but also we are increasing and improving habitat for grassland dependent wildlife,” he says. “That includes plants and animals.”
An example of these animals is the prairie chicken.
These prescription fires can be done for just about $15-per-acre and can mean a whole lot to landowners worried about the future of their property.
This isn’t the first time the group has worked on a burn in Valley County. and they hope to come back again.