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According to Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary, the word prescribe means “to lay down as a rule or directive; to establish rules, laws, or directions; to order or recommend a remedy or treatment.” A prescription is a formula directing the preparation of something ; in this case it refers to a fire. A fire prescription for a prescribed fire is a set of conditions under which a fire will be set to meet specific land management goals and objectives; it is also the systematically planned application of burning to meet specific management applications (Scrifres and Hamilton 1993). Fire prescriptions are based on scientific research and experience; remember that specific recommendations must be customized for each particular burn unit. In any given case there are numerous possible fire prescriptions based on countless factors, which can vary from type of burn (reclamation or maintenance), fuel load, fuel type, fire boss experience, crew experience, and available equipment, to the management goals and objectives of that specific unit. Based on these variables, one set prescription will not necessarily work for all burn units, even when adjacent to each other. Why do you need a prescription to conduct a prescribed burn? The first answer is safety—not only the safety of the people conducting the fire but also the safety of the people who might be impacted by smoke or by the fire itself if it were to escape.You should always have a set of guidelines, including weather conditions, under which you will or will not burn. A prescription allows you to burn when conditions are safest for everyone involved; it also makes containment of the fire easier. Second, a prescription can help you meet your management goals and objectives. The prescription will allow you to determine under what type of conditions you should burn to achieve a specific objective. This could range from burning to control brush in light fuels to conducting a fire that does not scorch or top-kill certain trees. Third, a prescription will allow for the execution of the burn in an organized and well-thought-out manner. Finally, it provides documentation of environmental conditions and the reason the burn is being conducted. Writing a single prescription for all prescribed burns is difficult and can be limiting. Each burn unit is different and can be burned safely under a wide range of conditions.Written prescriptions can also cause problems in the courtroom , as discovered by several people who have given expert testimony in cases involving fire. When there are published prescription recommendations and a person chooses to burn outside these parameters, liability increases even if chapter 7 Fire Prescriptions And say to the forest of the south, Hear God; Behold, I will kindle a fire in thee, and it shall devour every green tree in thee, and every dry tree: the flaming flame shall not be quenched, and all faces from the south to the north shall be burned therein. —Ezekiel 20:47 Fire Prescriptions 63 conditions for burning were safe. Granted, some units should only be burned under the safest prescriptions, but others can be burned safely even under extreme conditions. If written prescriptions are published for a region, then each burn unit within this area is limited to these sets of conditions. Therefore, I recommend using a wide range of weather parameters for prescriptions and modifying existing prescriptions to specific burn units as needed. Table 7-1 shows the prescription range for conducting prescribed fires. Each burn unit is different and can be burned under a wide range of conditions; the main thing to remember is to burn when it is safe. A prime example is two burn units located right next to each other. One unit has been burned successfully for several years and is composed of a large quantity of grass and some scattered brush.This burn unit could in all probability be burned safely with low temperatures, high relative humidity, and lower wind speeds. The other unit has not been burned, nor has any other type of management practice been conducted on it for several years. The unit is covered with dense brush and a low amount of fine fuel. To burn this unit effectively will require higher temperatures, lower relative humidity, and higher winds. These two units have the same plant species and are in the same region but will require two different prescriptions for burning (Figure 7-1). Another example of a prescription being stretched to its limit would be a burn unit located...

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