The fact that our town is bordered on two sides by forest makes it somewhat vulnerable to wildfire. Much of the forested lands on the south side of town are intermingled with homes. Those homes are more susceptible to damage by fire…and because of that can be made safer by creating defensible zones around them.
The homes along the west side of town have a more clearly-defined border, with forested lands managed by the city beyond. Those forested acres were, in large part, very well manicured a few years back by Bob Schroeter and the Jacksonville Woodlands Association. Tree limbs were pruned, and ladder fuels (brush species growing in the space between grasses and tree canopies) removed. Since that time, ground fuels, primarily consisting of grasses, dead limbs, and shrubs have once again accumulated.
In order to maintain the defensible space in these woodland acres, a prescribed burn is planned later this year. The first area to receive treatment is seven acres of gently-sloping terrain bordering the Timber Ridge neighborhood. The northern edge of the treatment area is bounded by an existing trail, and the southern edge is the cleared land of the neighborhood. Grayback Forestry Inc., the firm the city anticipates will do the work, is a company whose primary mission is, “To be a good steward of our nation’s forests and to protect life and property from the risk of wildfire and other disasters through prevention, protection and risk management.” www.Graybackforestry.com This is the beginning of what hopes to be a long-term project of fuel reduction.
For the public to become better informed as to how this project will be completed, a public meeting is planned for 10:00am on Saturday, May 18, 2019, at the upper Britt parking lot. A representative from Grayback Forestry, as well as members of the JWA, will be present to answer any and all questions.