Single Incident Information

Smoke Is a Necessary Part of Northern Arizona's Landscape

Ponderosa Pine forests are fire-adapted ecosystems.  More than 100 years of effort to protect the American landscape from any fire has, in many cases, done the exact opposite. Today, we know that keeping fires out of the forests allows dead wood and other fuels to build up, so instead of natural and frequent low fires that clean up the forest like a janitor, flames can climb into the crowns of the trees, killing them and burning so hot that they leave total devastation and destruction to the landscape and communities. Mother Nature uses fire to right the balance, and we have kept that from happening and must now play catch-up in the form of prescribed burns and managed fires.
WE DO NOT HAVE A CHOICE.

So—whether we like it or not—fire and smoke will occur either one of two ways: catastrophically or under safer conditions (i.e. prescribed burns or natural wildfires we manage when conditions are safe). Thus, we use prescribed burns and allow some lightning-caused wildfires to move across the landscape to clean and restore the forest to healthier conditions instead of the old ideology of suppressing every fire that pops up. The old ideology allowed for the buildup of forest fuels to a point where extremely hot fires destroy the landscape, property and communities. For more information on why prescribed burns are necessary and how to prepare for them, please visit our Fire Management page.

Prescribed burn projects usually commence during the early spring and fall months in northern Arizona. The public can get informed about upcoming prescribed burn projects and forest happenings by signing up to receive news releases in their email. The user just needs to provide their email address and select the “General public and local residents” list on the page before clicking “Sign Up.”

All projects are dependent upon weather conditions, so some of the projects might be cancelled at the last minute after testing weather conditions the day of the burn. You can check back here any time for updates, as this information is updated as it becomes available.

The following include any prescribed burn projects planned on the Coconino National Forest (listed chronologically). _____________________________________________________________________________________

Horseshoe- Maxwell Springs

• Dates: April 28 or 29, 2025.
• Location: Flagstaff Ranger District. 1.5 miles north of Bellemont.
• Size: 369 acres.
• Type of Burn: Broadcast, maintenance burn. (See Methods & Types of Prescribed Burns dropdown menu for explanation.)
• Smoke Impacts: Possible smoke impacts to U.S. Highway 180 in and around the Fort Valley area during the day and at night smoke impacts possible to Bellemont and I-40 in the Bellemont area.
• Why: This prescribed burn will reduce hazardous fuels in the area, creating a fire-resilient ecosystem to help protect the communities of Bellemont, Fort Valley, and Flagstaff from catastrophic wildfires.
• Notes: An area closure is in effect until April 30.

Blue Ridge Urban Interface

• Date: April 28 to May 1, 2025.
• Location: Mogollon Rim Ranger District. 7 miles northeast of Clints Well.
• Size: 3,181 acres total over two days.
• Type of Burn: Broadcast, maintenance burn.
• Smoke Impacts: In the evening and early morning hours after the burn, smoke will likely impact some areas of Route 87 near the burn. Smoke may also impact the greater Blue Ridge and Clear Creek Pines communities.
• Why: This prescribed burn will reduce hazardous fuels accumulated around the community of Blue Ridge and limit the potential for catastrophic wildfires. This project incorporates and develops a protection plan for the Blue Ridge Community.
• Notes: The Arizona National Scenic Trail will be rerouted to Forest Road 211 to go around the burn area.

West Fork Crater Sinks

• Dates: April 30 or May 1, 2025.
• Location: Flagstaff Ranger District.  13 miles southwest of Flagstaff.
• Size: 1,795 acres total (955 acres of national forest; 840 acres of state land).
• Type of Burn: Broadcast, with components of initial entry and maintenance.
• Smoke Impacts: Smoke impacts should stay localized to the burn area with a slight chance of overnight impacts to U.S. Highway 89A in the Fry Canyon area near Forest Road 535A. Possible impacts to Sedona and the Village of Oak Creek—especially in the evening hours after the burn.
• Why: This burn will reduce the risk of catastrophic wildfire southwest of Flagstaff by reducing hazardous forest fuels accumulation.
• Notes: The intent is to complete this burn in one day on April 30 with the use of aerial ignitions but is weather dependent.

Horseshoe- Kendrick

• Dates: May 1-2, 2025.
• Location: Flagstaff Ranger District. 17 miles northwest of Flagstaff on the west side of Kendrick Park.
• Size: 2,761 acres (1,398 acres planned for May 1 and 1,363 acres on May 2).
• Type of Burn: Broadcast, with components of initial entry and maintenance.
• Smoke Impacts: Smoke impacts to Doney park and Cosnino are expected but should be light. Impacts to I-40 are expected at night.
• Why: This prescribed burn will reduce hazardous fuels in the area, creating a fire-resilient ecosystem. By reducing hazardous fuels, such as pine needles, dead wood, and pinecones during times of cooler weather and lower winds, fire managers can create buffer zones around communities. to safeguard homes and infrastructure from the risk of catastrophic wildfire during peak wildfire season.
• Notes: The western side of this burn project has a significant amount of dead and down wood from the Horseshoe Fire in 1995, so that portion is considered initial entry and will produce significantly more smoke than other areas.

Sawmill

• Dates: May 1-3, 2025.
• Location: Mogollon Rim Ranger District. 10 miles southeast of Mormon Lake.
• Size: 1,604 acres.
• Type of Burn: Broadcast, maintenance burn.
• Smoke Impacts: Smoke may impact areas of Interstate 40 around Twin Arrows as well as Winslow. Smoke will be noticeable to motorists along I-17 in the Stoneman Lake exit area.
• Why: This prescribed burn will reduce hazardous forest fuels in the area, protecting main powerlines that feed electricity to the greater Phoenix area and help mitigate catastrophic wildfire.
• Notes: There is a good possibility this burn may be postponed due to wetter weather conditions.