BLM to proceed with prescribed research burns in northern Nevada

RENO - Two prescribed burns in northern Nevada will be carried out within the next week, weather permitting, now that a month-long moratorium on controlled fires has been lifted.

The research burns in the Pah Rah Range northeast of Sparks and in Churchill County's Edwards Creek Valley were initially planned for late May or early June.

But those, along with other prescribed burns across the country, were put on hold after last month's devastating wildfire in New Mexico.

That fire roared through 47,000 acres and left 405 families homeless after a control burn set by the National Park Service got out of control.

Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt lifted a month-long moratorium on prescribed fires this week.

The Nevada burns each will be four acres in size and should be completed in a day, the BLM said.

The fires part of a research effort to determine if prescribed burns can help reduce the size and frequency of wildland fires.

The agency said the burns will be postponed if weather or fuel conditions are deemed too hazardous.