West Texas Rangelands
West Texas RangelandsWe hope to provide a variety of information from current news stories, prescribed burning, wildfires, brush control, and cow-calf management!

East Texas Landowners: $800,000 Available for Prescribed Burning

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Texas A&M Forest Service grant application period is now open and will close September 30, 2024 for prescribed fire grants awarded to East Texas Landowners.

To determine if you are eligible to apply and to access the online application, be sure to visit the Texas A&M Forest Service Site. There have been some changes this year including the name, eligible area for the program and rate changes. In addition, the recipient of this award must be a licensed or utilize a contractor who is licensed by the Texas Department of Agriculture as a certified and insured prescribed burn manager. Texas A&M Forest Service does not conduct the prescribed burns. 

Below are the changes that have been made to this year’s grant program:

  • The program name has changed to the State Fire Capacity near Federal Lands in East Texas Prescribed Fire Grant (SFC-ETX).
  • The program area has shifted to 20 counties in southeast Texas
  • Applicants who desire to burn on a 2-year fire return interval, the rate has been reduced to $22.50 per area
  • Maximum reimbursement rate for a new project is $30.00 per acre
  • If you received payments in 2024, you are not eligible for 2025 funding
  • If you were approved in 2024 and did not complete your project, you will be given priority in 2025
  • If you received funding in 2023 and are reapplying, the maximum reimbursement rate is $22.50 per acre
  • If you received funding in 2022 or prior, maximum reimbursement is $30.00 per acre

You can find more information about each of these programs here!

For questions please reach out to – ETxRxFireGrants@tfs.tamu.edu

Prescribed Fire Lessons

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The Nebraska Prescribed Fire Council has published its second issue of Prescribed Fire Lessons Learned! The Nebraska Prescribed Fire Council takes submissions from practitioners on lessons learned from prescribed fires to assist producers, landowners, PBAs, and other prescribed fire professionals to keep improving season after season.  This forum has been invaluable in learning from one another in hopes that mistakes or judgment calls turn into valuable lessons for all of us building and contributing to prescribed fire culture. Below are some highlights from this issue. 

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Lessons Learned – Contributing Factors to UTV Rollover on Prescribed Fire

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In Feb. 2023, Oakmulgee Ranger District was conducting their first large burn of the season. Multiple off-unit resources had been requested to assist with the burn, including various firefighters from other regions, Job Corps, Bureau of Land Management, and local militia. 

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UTV Incidents Dominates 2023 Lessons Learned

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One of the big takeaways from the 2023 summary of incident reports from the Wildland Fire Lessoned Learned Center was the increase of UTV related incidents. Over the past 14 years, the most UTV related incidents in one year was 5. In 2023 however, there were 13 related incidents. The graph shows 15 accumulated years of UTV involved incidents, including rollovers, entrapments, equipment damage, and tree strikes.

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Exotic Herbivores and Fire Energy Drive Standing Herbaceous Biomass but do not Alter Compositional Patterns in a Semiarid Savanna Ecosystem

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Did you know that fire regime alterations are pushing open ecosystems worldwide past tipping points where alternative steady states characterized by woody dominance prevail. The intensity and frequency of surface fires are reduced, limiting their effectiveness for controlling cover of woody plants. Grazing pressure can also reinforce woody encroachment by potentially reducing fine-fuel loads. 

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Analysis of the Cost and Cost Components of Conducting Prescribed Fires in the Great Plains

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Fire is a naturally occurring process that was first applied by the Native Americans and continues today in the Great Plains by a diverse group of landowners. Fire is an incredible tool that is used to help restore fire regimes in the region. Not only is it used to restore fire regimes, it is also used to maintain and grow benefits for Agricultural outputs, risk reduction, and ecosystem maintenance.

 

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Prescribed Fire Training 2024 SCHEDULED DATES

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We have three upcoming fire events in 2024 that you will want to save the date for!

Prescribed Burn School 

July 22-24, 2024

San Angelo, Texas

 

First up is our 2024 in-person, 24-hr Texas Department of Agriculture (TDA) curriculum approved Prescribed Burn School. This event will be held in San Angelo, Texas July 22-24, 2024 at the Texas A&M AgriLife Research Center (7887 US HWY 87 North San Angelo, TX 76901). Upon completion of this burn school, you will be able to evaluate fuels, describe fire behavior, plan a prescribed burn, identify proper equipment and safety techniques, mitigate smoke impacts, understand Texas laws and regulations, and evaluate potential burn sites. This school will include the field component implementing a prescribed fire (if conditions allow) and the opportunity to complete the TDA Certified and Insured Prescribed Burn Manager exam as a requirement to apply for the Certified and Insured Prescribed Burn Manager (CIPBM) license from the Texas Department of Agriculture.  Any individuals who have completed the online Prescribed Burn School are welcome to attend the field day training and complete the exam (burn day and exam TBD July 22-24).  6 Continuing Fire Training Credits for TDA CIPBM license holders will be offered. 

 

Fire Field Day

December 3, 2024 

San Angelo, Texas

 

If you have completed the online Prescribed Burn School from AgriLife Learn and would like to complete the prescribed burn and take the TDA CIPBM Exam, this is an option for you! This will also be hosted in San Angelo, Texas at the Texas A&M AgriLife Research and Extension Center.  6 Continuing Fire Training Credits for TDA CIPBM license holders will be offered. 

 

Great Plains Fire Summit

August 13-15, 2024 

Canyon, Texas

 

Our last Fire event will be our Great Plains Fire Summit that will be held on August 13-15! This event will be held in Canyon, Texas. This Summit is an incredible, practical, and applied prescribed fire conference dedicated to all types of fire practitioners.  6 Continuing Fire Training Credits for TDA CIPBM license holders will be offered at the Fire Summit.  

Be sure to save the dates on all three of these events. Registration and more information including detailed agendas are coming soon! For more information email Casey.Matzke@ag.tamu.edu. 

Patch Burning Improves Nutritional Quality of Two Gulf Coast Grasses

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Gulf cordgrass and seacoast bluestem are native warm season grasses that are found in the Texas Coastal Prairies and Marshes ecoregions. Mature Gulf cordgrass has a nutritional value that is considered poor for grazing animals while the seacoast bluestems nutritional value is considered fair to good in spring and early summer. 

Haynes, V.L.; Avila-Sanchez, J.S.; Toomey, A.E.; Ortega-S., J.A.; Campbell, T.A.; Ortega-S., A., Jr.; Rideout-Hanzak, S.; Wester, D.B. Patch Burning Improves Nutritional Quality of Two Gulf Coast Grasses—And Winter Burning Is Better than Summer Burning. Fire 2023, 6, 105. https://doi.org/ 10.3390/fire6030105

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