Santa Fe National Forest Announces Prescribed Fire Projects

The Santa Fe National Forest is planning prescribed fire operations in September, pending all required approvals. We estimate this work to continue through the fall and winter as weather conditions allow. Prescribed fire helps reduce overgrown vegetation to protect local communities, infrastructure and natural resources from catastrophic wildfires. 

The following prescribed fire projects are tentatively planned: 

Jemez Ranger District 

• Holiday North 
• Acres: 853 
• Location: Holiday Mesa approximately 3 miles northwest of the village of Jemez Springs 
• Smoke: Smoke will be visible from Jemez Springs, Pueblo of Jemez, Ponderosa, Canon, Gilman, and from U.S. Route 550 between Rio Rancho and San Ysidro.  
• NEPA: The Southwest Jemez Collaborative Forest Landscape Restoration Project is a long-term forest and watershed restoration project to increase the landscape's resilience to severe wildfire and other large-scale disturbances. 

Española Ranger District 

• Borrego Campground 
• Acres: 399  
• Location: Borrego Mesa approximately 4 miles south of Truchas, N.M. 
• Smoke: Smoke will be visible from Cordovas, Chimayo, Cundiyo and Truchas. 
• NEPA: The Borrego Mesa Fuelwood Treatment includes thinning and burning to create healthy and resilient ecosystems and timber stands.  

These areas may close during project implementation for public safety. Watch for warning signs along roads near all prescribed fire areas before and during burns.  

Residents may experience smoke during the prescribed burns. Go to https://fire.airnow.gov/ to find more detailed information about air quality. When driving, slow down and turn on your headlights when you encounter smoke on the road. 

We will evaluate weather conditions in the hours before a burn begins. If conditions warrant, scheduled prescribed fire activities may be canceled. 

Stay informed about scheduled prescribed fires through the forest website, social media channels, and InciWeb, the interagency incident information system. We will notify county emergency management officials when burning begins.   

About the Forest Service: The USDA Forest Service has for more than 100 years brought people and communities together to answer the call of conservation. Grounded in world-class science and technology– and rooted in communities–the Forest Service connects people to nature and to each other. The Forest Service cares for shared natural resources in ways that promote lasting economic, ecological, and social vitality. The agency manages 193 million acres of public land, provides assistance to state and private landowners, maintains the largest wildland fire and forestry research organizations in the world. The Forest Service also has either a direct or indirect role in stewardship of about 900 million forested acres within the U.S., of which over 130 million acres are urban forests where most Americans live. 

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