Prescribed burns the next six months

Specialists with the USDA’s Forest Service have begun prescribed burns across the Sumter and Francis Marion national forests in South Carolina.  Over the next six months, the plan is to burn 118 thousand acres, including 8 thousand acres inside the Andrew Pickens District in Oconee County.  Prescribed fire is considered critical to improve plant and animal habitat and the resiliency of the forest landscapes to withstand drought, insects and disease.  In various parts of the national forests, we are liable to notice smoke.  Drivers should use low beams if they encounter smoke on the roads.  If you have questions about prescribed burns, contact a Forest Service district office such as the Mountain Rest office at 864/638-9568.