300 acres of land burned on Fort Benning
FT. BENNING, Ga. () — January through May is prime time for Fort Benning to conduct the majority of their prescribed burns.
According to the fort's Natural resources branch, prescribed burns remove burnable fuel that accumulates within the forest and access the forested landscape without damaging the forest ecosystem.
James Parker, Branch chief for Natural resources on Fort Bennings says roughly 40 million rounds are fired a year on the installation through training.
'They start wildfires, so by doing prescribed burning, you keep those fuel loads manageable. So when we do have training fires, it's easy to control and manage,' says Parker.
This year, the military post has conducted 84 burns. They have 79 remaining.
On Friday, 300 acres of land was burned in about an hour. Parker and his team plan to burn 72,000 acres by the end of the year.
Parker explained the planning process for prescribed burns is extensive as there are many uncontrollable factors when it comes to burning like weather.
The natural resource team also has to be strategic where they burn as Fort Benning has millions of dollars of assets in burning areas.
Tommy Hutcherson, Forester Technician for the Natural Resources Branch on Fort. Benning says they treat over 10,000 protected trees before burning.
Trees that are protected belong to the Red Cockaded Woodpecker which is a species of concern.
'The tree would survive even if it burned all the way up to the cavity,' Hutcherson says. 'In the middle of April and May, one of the cavities in the clusters will have babies in it. We don't want to burn the babies up,' Hutcherson says.
'Main things that we're trying to protect are the bands that are identifiers for the army and for our personnel to be able to find the trees,' Hutcherson adds.
The Natural Resources maintain roughly 1,200 miles of no named trails and fire breaks to aid in fire control. They work roughly 300 miles a year.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
9 hours ago
- Yahoo
Fulton celebrates Medal of Honor hero for D-Day bravery
FULTON, N.Y. (WSYR-TV) — June 6 has a new meaning to community members in the City of Fulton. The city has recognized a Medal of Honor recipient for acts of heroism on D-Day. Fulton said as part of 'Carlton W. Barrett Day,' they honor a local hero and teach students about the sacrifices made during World War II. The day is dedicated to Carlton W. Barrett, a veteran who they said displayed extraordinary bravery during the D-Day invasion. Barrett, a native of Fulton, served in the U.S. Army and was awarded the Medal of Honor for his valor on June 6, 1944. Courtesy of Bill Cahill. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
9 hours ago
- Yahoo
4 Gulf World dolphins adjust to Clearwater Marine Aquarium, 7 still await relocation
PANAMA CITY BEACH, Fla. (WMBB) – On Wednesday, June 4, News 13 broke the story about the four Gulf World Marine Park dolphins being relocated to the Clearwater Marine Aquarium. Crews arrived at Gulf World around 11 p.m. Tuesday, loaded up the animals and headed south. They arrived in Clearwater around 11 a.m. E.T. Wednesday morning. All the rough-toothed female dolphins appeared to immediately take to their new surroundings. The staff in Clearwater set benchmarks for the dolphins to gauge how they are adjusting. On Friday, June 6, they told local officials all four of the animals blew away those benchmarks and are 'thriving' in their new home. 4 Gulf World dolphins moved to Clearwater Marine Aquarium As for the seven remaining bottle-nosed dolphins still at Gulf World, local officials told News 13 they are still waiting on the results of some tissue and fluid tests done within the last week. The results will determine if the dolphins are healthy and able to be placed with other dolphins. Once they're medically clear, they'll be transferred to another facility that has yet to be confirmed. Some in the decision-making process don't want them to go to another 'Dolphin Company-owned' facility. They point to the fact that the company is currently in bankruptcy proceedings and the poor conditions at Gulf World. Five dolphins have died at Gulf World since October 2024. The public outcry is responsible for the relocation of all of the marine animals. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
12 hours ago
- Yahoo
24-hour fundraising marathon NEPA Gives wraps up with over $1M raised
(WBRE/WYOU) — The 24-hour fundraising marathon known as NEPA Gives wrapped up at 7:00 p.m. Friday. Over $1,000,000 has been raised since the 24-hour online fundraiser kicked off Thursday night. Cutting the ribbon for new Scranton playground This year, your donations will go even further thanks to bonus funds and matching dollars from generous sponsors. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
