US Forest Service - Savannah River

Fire Management

The fire management program is designed to manage fire as an ecological process, to reduce fire damage to forest resources, and to minimize the impact of smoke on facilities.  Smoke management to minimize health and accident risks to onsite and offsite personnel is one of the greatest concerns in the fire program.  USFS-SR has joint protection agreements with South Carolina and other agencies to efficiently utilize local resources.  Prescribed burning is essential to the restoration of the native longleaf fire savannah communities and to several wetland restoration efforts.  Approximately 15,000 to 18,000 acres are burned annually.  The fire staff is active in research support for a wide range of projects on SRS.  They work with Forest Service national smoke researchers and State and Federal regulators to develop and test new smoke dispersion models.  The fire staff also provides support for marking timber, planting trees, controlling soil erosion, and installing RCW inserts.  Firefighters and Smokey Bear make numerous visits to schools in the area to talk about fire prevention. 

The following are services that the fire management program provides to partners and SRS cooperators:

• Prescribed burning to restore fire as an ecological process at SRS.
• Reduction of catastrophic wildland fires.  This is accomplished largely by annual prescribed burning of forests to reduce fuels, burning railroad rights-of-way, prevention education, and aerial detection.
• Air quality protection for facilities where smoke from wildland forest fires can disrupt nuclear and other site operations, which can significantly impair the ability of personnel to perform their work.  Smoke management is accomplished by quick response to wildfire and by following air quality management guidelines for South Carolina.
• Remote worker tracking, emergency response, and communications for all contractors, research workers, and education classes operated through USFS-SR.  This system of coordination and communication is necessary in the event of an emergency.
• Personnel support for research and other operational programs.

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