Fire restrictions everywhere, especially on wildlife lands
Update 1 p.m. on June 29: Idaho Panhandle National Forests and BLM lands announce Stage 1 fire restrictions -- no campfires ouside designated campsites, no smoking, hours for chainsaw use, etc. starting June 30, 2015.
PUBLIC LANDS -- National forests, wildlife refuges, parks and Bureau of Land Management agencies have enacted fire restrictions as the landscape continues to bake to toward tinder dry.
Fireworks are banned in most areas and campfires are allowed only in designated campground pits. The Umatilla National Forest has prohibited smoking and the use of chain saws from 1 p.m. to 8 p.m., plus other restrictions. Some other forests are following suit. All forests the region prohibit use of exploding targets.
State land managers also have set restrictions on use of fire. The restrictions on Eastern Washington wildlife areas managed by the Department of Fish and Wildlife are among the most restrictive. After all, they are the grocery stores that feeds much of our region's coveted wildlife.
Here are details on restrictions enacted last week -- several weeks earlier than normal -- from the WDFW:
The emergency order prohibits:
- Fires or campfires: However, personal camp stoves or lanterns fueled by liquid petroleum, liquid petroleum gas or propane are allowed.
- Smoking: Unless in an enclosed vehicle.
- Welding and the use of chainsaws and other equipment: Operating a torch with an open flame and equipment powered by an internal combustion engine is prohibited.
- Operating a motor vehicle off developed roads: Except when parking in areas without vegetation within 10 feet of the roadway and parking in developed campgrounds and at trailheads.
- Fireworks are prohibited year-round at all 33 WDFW wildlife areas and 700-plus water access sites around the state. So is throwing a lit cigarette or any other burning material from a motor vehicle on a state highway.
These restrictions are consistent with efforts by the Washington Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and other local, state and federal agencies to minimize the risk of wildfires.
The restrictions will remain in effect until conditions improve, the risk of wildfires decreases, and revisions are made on the agency's website.
Information about fires and fire prevention on public lands is available from:
