New River Gorge National Park and Preserve Fire Managers plan to burn approximately 37 acres sometime between March 1 and March 31 in the Grandview area of the park near the Grandview Visitor Center. Fire managers will use wind speed and direction, humidity and other factors to determine the exact date of the burn. The prescribed burn area is located east of I-64, approximately five miles off exit 129. The burn will be expected to take several hours to complete.
The purpose of this prescribed burn is to prevent the transition of the field into a closed canopy forest, a process that would displace declining grassland bird species. The park uses prescribed fire to maintain the field while promoting the establishment of tall grass species favored by grassland nesting birds.
A prescribed burn is a planned fire. This planned fire has a set of parameters that define the desired weather and fuel conditions necessary for a prescribed burn to take place. Before implementing this burn, the fire manager will evaluate current conditions. The fire manager will only begin ignition if the prescribed conditions are safe for human beings, property and wildlife.
Park officials do not expect the burn to interfere with traffic flow on Raleigh County Road 9 North (the road to Grandview). For more information, please contact New River Gorge National Park and Preserve Fire Management staff at 304-465-6529.
