Upcoming Kansas Prescribed Burning Workshops

Fire safety and burning techniques are the priority topics of the upcoming Prescribed Burning Workshops scheduled for January and February.

            Carol Blocksome, Department of Agronomy, Kansas State University (KSU), Manhattan, said that these popular workshops are a continuation of a multi-agency effort to inform producers about prescribed burning.  It is evident from these workshops that producers need and want more information and education on how to conduct a safe and successful prescribed burn.

            "Safe burning requires proper planning, education, and training," she said.

            "Producers may want to burn native and Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) grassland to improve vegetative quality, control weeds, manage for wildlife, or fulfill CRP contractual obligations," said Blocksome.

            "I would encourage any producer who is thinking of burning grassland in Kansas to attend one of these workshops," Blocksome said.

            There is a registration charge to attend the workshops, which covers the cost of handouts and a notebook, and in some cases, a meal. RSVP deadline is a week prior to the workshop date.  For more information, please contact your office listed below.

            Prescribed Burning workshops are being held at the locations listed below.  The content of all the workshops is very similar, so producers can attend the most convenient location.

            Agenda topics are:

Reasons for Burning

Notification, Regulations, and Permits

Weather

Liability

Using a Burn Contractor and Burning Assistance

Equipment, Hazards, and Firebreaks

Planning and Conducting a Burn

            Presenters include representatives from the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), Farm Service Agency (FSA), Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks and Tourism (KDWPT), Kansas Forest Service (KFS), U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), National Weather Service (NWS), KSU, as well as local fire and emergency management staff and local producers with burn experience.  Presenters vary by workshop, but all will be presenting essentially the same information.

            Workshops are hosted by local conservation districts, Watershed Restoration and Protection Strategy (WRAPS) groups, Kansas local fire departments and emergency management personnel, KFS, KDWP, KSU Extension, producer groups, and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) agencies in Kansas--FSA and NRCS. Host agency varies by workshop.

Workshop Dates           County(ies)                   Call for More Information

December 5, 2012         Trego                           Jessica Wesley  785-743-2011

January 3, 2013             Jackson                                    Roberta Spencer  785-364-4638

January 10, 2013           Crawford                      Randy Bennett  620-724-6227

January 23, 2013           Pottawatomie                Austin Sexten  785-457-3319

February 28, 2013          Shawnee/Douglas          Judy Boltman  785-267-5721 ext-3

To Be Determined         Barber                         Ken Brunson  620-388-3768

To Be Determined         Kearney                       Mark Goudy  620-355-7911

            For more information about developing a prescribed burn plan for native grass or acres enrolled in the CRP, contact your local USDAService Center (listed in the telephone book under United States Government or on the Internet at offices.usda.gov).  Follow us on Twitter at NRCS_Kansas.  USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer.