Smoke wafting into Carson City skies from open permit burning and Tahoe controlled fire

A light smoke that began moving into Carson City early Saturday evening may be a result of controlled burn operations on the west shore of Lake Tahoe or open permit burning within the city limits, according to dispatch and the U.S. Forest Service.

According to a Douglas County dispatcher, there is a controlled burn that began Saturday in the Meeks Bay area, which appears to have drifted east. There have not been any Forest Service controlled fires between the east shore Tahoe and Spooner Saturday, however there was burning in the Zephyr Cove area earlier this week that may still be putting out some smoke, according to the Forest Service.

Beginning Saturday around the Carson City limits, open burning is allowed with a permit. According to dispatch, smoke that is wafting around Carson City could also be attributed to the open burn.

At Tahoe, the Meeks Bay burning is around 10-20 acres, in a total area of 285 acres. Smoke was anticipated to travel from the west to the east northeast, according to a news release made available Friday by the U.S. Forest Service Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit.

North Lake Tahoe and Tahoe Douglas fire protection districts and the U.S. Forest Service will continue prescribed fire operations over the next few weeks in various locations around the Lake Tahoe Basin. Operations may take place near Incline Village, Meyers and Zephyr Cove Park.

Operations will continue as conditions allow.

Fall and winter bring cooler temperatures and precipitation, which favor prescribed burning. Each prescribed fire operation follows a prescribed fire burn plan, which considers temperature, humidity, wind, moisture of the vegetation, and conditions for the dispersal of smoke. This information is used to decide when and where to burn. The Tahoe Fire and Fuels Team (TFFT) will give as much advance notice as possible before burning, but some operations may be conducted on short notice.

Smoke from prescribed fire operations is normal and may continue for several days after an ignition depending on the project size and environmental conditions. Agencies coordinate with state and local county air pollution control districts and monitor weather conditions closely prior to prescribed fire ignition. They wait for favorable conditions that will carry smoke up and out of the Basin. Crews also conduct test burns before igniting a larger area, to verify how effectively fuels are consumed how smoke will travel.

Before prescribed fire operations are conducted, agencies post road signs around areas affected by prescribed fire, send email notifications and update the local fire information line at 530-543-2816. To receive prescribed fire notifications, send an email to pa_ltbmu@fs.fed.us. For more information on prescribed fire operations and smoke management tips, visit http://www.fs.usda.gov/goto/ltbmu/RxFireOps.

Project Information:

· Project Name: East Second Creek (ES-2)

· Responsible Agency/Contact: North Lake Tahoe Fire Protection District, Isaac Powning 775-233-0936

· Legal Location: Various

· Descriptive Location: East Side of Second Creek Drainage

· Type of burn: Hand Piles

· Total Acreage: 3

· Planned Ignition: 11/1/2015 and continuing as conditions permit

· Duration of Ignition and Smoke Production: 2 days of burn down time, each unit

· Estimated Direction of Smoke Travel: North/Northeast

· Communities or Smoke Sensitive Areas: Smoke may be visible throughout Tahoe Basin and surrounding communities.

· Project Name: Apollo (A-1)

· Responsible Agency/Contact: North Lake Tahoe Fire Protection District, Isaac Powning 775-233-0936

· Legal Location: Various

· Descriptive Location: East Side of Third Creek Drainage

· Type of burn: Hand Piles

· Total Acreage: 10

· Planned Ignition: 11/1/2015 and continuing as conditions permit

· Duration of Ignition and Smoke Production: 2 days of burn down time, each unit

· Estimated Direction of Smoke Travel: North/Northeast

· Communities or Smoke Sensitive Areas: Smoke may be visible throughout Tahoe Basin and surrounding communities.

· Project Name: Elks Point 3 Fuels Reduction Project

· Responsible Agency/Contact: Tahoe Douglas Fire Protection District, Eric Guevin 775-588-3591

· Legal Location: T13 R18 S03

· Descriptive Location: Douglas County Zephyr Cove Park near Warrior Way

· Type of burn: Understory

· Total Acreage: 8

· Planned Ignition: 10/27 - 28/2015

· Duration of Ignition and Smoke Production: 7 Days

· Estimated Direction of Smoke Travel: North/Northeast

· Communities or Smoke Sensitive Areas: Smoke may be visible from Spooner Summit to Stateline NV. Smoke may be present at Highway 50 near Warrior Way during morning hours.

· Project Name: Grass lake ULM

· Responsible Agency/Contact: U.S. Forest Service, Kyle Jacobson (530) 543-2658

· Legal Location: 11N, 18E, Sec. 8, 17

· Descriptive Location: Hwy 89/ Grass Lake Rd

· Type of burn: Hand

· Total Acreage: 122

· Planned Ignition: 10/30/2015 and continuing as conditions permit

· Duration of Ignition and Smoke Production: 10 days of burn down time

· Estimated Direction of Smoke Travel: North/Northeast

· Communities or Smoke Sensitive Areas: Smoke may be visible from Meyers, Christmas Valley and Echo Summit.

· Project Name: Bobwhite 14-16

· Responsible Agency/Contact: U.S. Forest Service, Kyle Jacobson (530) 543-2658

· Legal Location: 14N, 17E, Sec 29, 30, 32

· Descriptive Location: Meeks Bay/Meeks Meadow

· Type of burn: Hand

· Total Acreage: 285

· Planned Ignition: 10/30/2015 and continuing as conditions permit

· Duration of Ignition and Smoke Production: 10 days of burn down time

· Estimated Direction of Smoke Travel: West/ Southwest switching to East Northeast

· Communities or Smoke Sensitive Areas: Smoke may be visible from the North Shore, East Shore and some South Shore Communities.