Tonto National Forest firefighters will conduct a 5,465-acre fuel treatment project on the Payson Ranger District beginning April 16 to May 3, 2024.
The Diamond Point / Pyeatt Draw prescribed fire will occur on Diamond Rim near Diamond Point Summer Homes and Diamond Point Lookout. Fire experts will ignite surface fuels such as ponderosa pine, juniper and shrubs under specified weather conditions.
These treatments modify wildfire behavior and effects by reducing surface fuels (dead vegetation on the forest floor such as branches or needles from ponderosa pine and juniper) and ladder fuels (small- to medium-sized trees with low-lying branches as well as shrubs that can carry fire from the ground into the tree canopy). In turn, this helps protect communities from extreme fires.
Prescribed fires support land management objectives by improving plant and wildlife habitat to increase biodiversity for wildlife corridors. Prescribed fires also help protect culturally significant native foods and plants, improve timber stands and recreational opportunities, and reduce the threat of invasive species on the landscape.
The planned burn also will improve the Ellison Creek watershed by reducing ground fuels and the risk of a large-scale wildland fire. Burned watersheds are prone to increased flooding and erosion, which can negatively affect water-supply reservoirs, water quality, and drinking-water treatment processes.
Smoke from the Diamond Point / Pyeatt Draw prescribed fire will be visible from State Routes 87 and 260 as well as Forest Service Roads 198 and 65 on neighboring national forests. Smoke will impact the following communities: Diamond Point Summer Homes, Ellison Creek Summer Homes, Ellison Creek Estates, Meads Ranch, Tonto Village, Bonita Creek Estates, Freedom Acres, Beaver Valley Estates, Whispering Pines, Thompson Draw Summer Homes Units 1 and 2, Diamond Point Shadows, Star Valley, and Payson. Residual smoke will remain in the air for several days after the final ignitions.
Forest Service officials urge the public to stay out of the project area and use caution when driving nearby to ensure the safety of fire management crews.
This upcoming prescribed fire supports the Four Forest Restoration Initiative. Commonly referred to as 4FRI, this landscape-level effort is restoring the structure, pattern, composition, and health of fire-adapted ponderosa pine ecosystems across 2.4 million acres in northern Arizona. The project uses a full suite of restoration approaches that are carried out by Forest Service personnel, partners, volunteers, and contractors. Additionally, the Forest Service consults with 17 Native American Tribes, as well as 10 Navajo Nation chapters on 4FRI.
Fuels reduction projects are part of the USDA Forest Service’s overarching wildfire crisis strategy to reduce wildfire risk to people, communities, and natural resources while sustaining and restoring healthy, resilient fire-adapted forests. For more information about the Forest Service’s 10-year strategy to address the wildfire crisis, visit the Confronting the Wildfire Crisis web page.
For additional information about this project, contact the Payson Ranger Station located at 1009 E. Highway 260, Payson, Arizona. Or phone the station at (928) 474-7900 Monday – Friday between 8 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. and from 1:30 - 4:30 p.m.
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