DUNNELLON, FL (352today.com) – If you see and smell smoke in Levy County, don’t worry. The Florida Forest Service (FFS) is planning a prescribed burn at the Goethe State Forest on Monday.
The FFS Waccasassa Forestry Center says it’s planning a 3,300-acre prescribed burn if weather conditions allow.
Forestry officials say they’ll use helicopters to ignite the burn which will be located south of SR 121, west of CR 337, north of CR 336 and east of US Highway 19.
“Smoke is not predicted to impact any roadways, and there are no road closures planned during the burn,” said the Florida Forest Service in a news release. “If you encounter smoke on the roads, lower your speed, turn on your low beams, and remain vigilant.”
State forestry officials say the Apex Trailhead will be closed for the duration of the burn.
Monday’s prescribed burn is taking place during Florida’s annual Prescribed Fire Awareness Week, Jan. 28 – Feb. 3, which they say highlights the importance and benefits of prescribed fire burning in Florida’s lands and forests.
| WEATHER FORECAST: Cool mornings, daytime highs in the 60s all week
The FFS says it administered the largest and most active prescribed fire program in the nation last year, issuing 85,000 open burn authorizations for public and private land managers to treat more than 2.2 million acres with prescribed fire.
“Nearly half of Florida is made up of forests, one of the state’s top agricultural commodities,” said FFS in a news release. “Managing these forests is essential to powering Florida’s economy, sustaining the ecosystem, and supporting the state’s infrastructure. Florida’s landscape is a fire-adapted ecosystem, depending on recurring fire to renew the forest and habitats that support native plants and animals.”