Burn permits required for spring burning season in Lincoln Co.
May 2—LIBBY — Starting Thursda 1, Lincoln County residents are required to obtain a burn permit for all residential yard cleanup burning through June 30.
Permits are free and can be obtained or renewed online through the Montana Burn Permit and Notification Service at: https://app.egovmt.com/burnpermit.
Once a permit is secured, it must be activated each day burning is conducted, either online or by phone at 406-283-2442.
Debris burning is a great way to clear dead vegetation and reduce fire hazards around your home and property. However, debris burning remains one of the leading causes of human-caused fires in northwestern Montana.
To ensure your burn doesn't become the next wildfire, take the necessary precautions: — Check the local spot weather forecast before you begin burning. Pay close attention to wind conditions for both the day of and day after your burn. — Burn early in the day, when humidity is higher. — Keep burn piles small, manageable, and attended at all times. — Do no burn garbage, plastic or treated wood as they release toxic chemicals into the air. — Have adequate tools and water supply on site, such as a charged hose, buckets, and shovel. — Check the area the next day to ensure no hot spots remain, especially in tree roots and stumps. — If your burn escapes control, call 911 immediately.
For seasonal burn schedules, air quality information, and agency contact information, visit www.fireadaptedkootenai.org.
The Department of Natural Resources and Conservation urges the public to do their part in preventing wildfires this spring. For more information on fire prevention and preparedness, visit MTfireinfo.org
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Yahoo
State wildfire briefing indicates fire season ‘could be significant'
DNRC Type 5 engine on the Banana Lake Fire. (Photo from Inciweb) With one fire blowing up over the weekend and an expected worse-than-average wildfire season across Montana, Gov. Greg Gianforte touted the efforts of the state Department of Natural Resources and Conservation, saying they've been able to keep 95% of wildfire starts to 10 acres or less since 2021. During an annual state fire briefing on Monday, he also recognized the 'proactive preparation, coordination and teamwork' he said was needed to keep people safe. The state has seen an early start to its fire season. Department of Natural Resources and Conservation Director Amanda Kaster said her agency is 'more prepared than ever' and thanked the legislature for the passage of wildfire bills during the session. 'The state of Montana and DNRC is prepared for the 2025 fire season, not only through our fire protection program, but through the work we do to reduce wildfire risk across Montana's landscapes,' Kaster said. The briefing also included a long-term weather forecast from Northern Rockies Coordination Center meteorologist Dan Borsum who said computer projections are calling for a dry and hot summer. He also said some weather patterns are similar to high fire danger years in the past – like 2000, 2002, 2006, 2017 and 2021. There's worry about drought impacting large portions of Montana and melted-out snowpack that places higher elevations at increased risk for fire, all of which could stretch resources. 'The multi-year deficits of moisture are starting to hurt us, the overall warm and dry summer forecast, and the fact that we may have fire on the landscape when the wind season approaches in September, because we didn't get that monsoon infusion,' Borsum said during the briefing. 'That has me very concerned that this fire season could be significant.' According to Montana has a higher risk of wildfires than 74% of states in the U.S. Additionally, Wildfire Risk reports more than half of all homes in Montana are at high risk of 'direct exposure,' which the organization defines as homes that 'may be ignited by adjacent vegetation, flying embers, or nearby structures.' A report in Government Technology this week also put Ravalli County among the highest risk for wildfire of any county in America. It said 99% of homes in the county are at 'high risk of wildfire exposure.' Fire experts say building homes out of nonflammable materials and designing them in ways that downgrade fire risk are critical to saving property. Additionally, land management practices like controlled burns, logging thinning operations and homeowners clearing brush from structures can prevent damage and make firefighters' jobs a little easier. Officials with the Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Forest Service and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, among other land management agencies, spoke at the briefing. Several agencies shared difficulties in hiring firefighting staff for the season, but highlighted their fuels and forest management programs aimed at limiting fuels for wildfires. The Forest Service said they conducted hazardous fuels reduction work on 200,000 acres of Montana forest in 2024, the BLM conducted approximately 38,000 acres of prescribed burns last year, the Forest Service while Fish and Wildlife Service said they burned around 11,000 — an outsized number given the agency's small land presence in the state. Some fire scientists have said prescribed burns are ineffective because of their relatively small scale. While fire prevention was part of the discussion, so was fighting fire — something being talked about at the national level, too. In Washington, D.C. this week, U.S. Sen. Tim Sheehy, R-Montana, helped push a bipartisan wildfire bill through Congress. The Aerial Firefighting Enhancement Act passed through both chambers and is headed to President Donald Trump's desk. The bill reauthorizes the sale of both airplanes and parts from the Department of Defense for aerial firefighting efforts. Sheehy founded a company that provides aerial firefighting services. 'Eliminating bureaucratic obstacles to fight wildfires more quickly and aggressively is America First common sense, and I appreciate my colleagues in the House and Senate for their support,' Sheehy said in a press release. 'I look forward to seeing this bipartisan bill cross the finish line so we can better support the brave first responders on the front lines fighting wildfires across the country.' Banana Lake update As of Wednesday, the Banana Lake fire near Plains was listed at 929 acres and 15% containment. Nick Holloway with the Western Montana All Hazards Incident Management Team and spokesperson for efforts on the fire said that four structures had been protected. He also added crews were in the process of mop-up operations, though the situation has been complex. Crews had to deal with seven spot fires on Tuesday, which Holloway said had been a 'huge concern,' though firefighters had contained those blazes. Additionally, the edge of the fire is a mix of burned and unburned materials, a situation they call a 'dirty burn.' It means there's more potential for spotting, which is the process in which sparks and embers get carried by the wind into unburned fuel. 'There could be a spark in one of those unburned pockets, and it's close to the edge,' Holloway said. 'And so during the mop-up efforts, they're going through that, gridding the area to look for residual sources of heat and extinguish them. But it takes a lot longer when you have that dirty burn than when you have a nice, clean edge.' Holloway said the Banana Fire represents a relatively early start to Montana's fire season, and cautioned that the state could be in for a long year. 'Predictive Services has told us it's going to be dry and warm, more so than normal,' Holloway said. 'So that's going to be problematic for this fire season.'
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Yahoo
Banana Lake fire near Plains expands to 850 acres
The Banana Lake Fire is pictured on Saturday, May 31, 2025. (Inciweb photo) An 850-acre wildfire exploded in size on Sunday about four miles north of Plains. The Banana Lake fire was discovered on Saturday and prompted a significant response from firefighting officials. As of Monday, 17 engines, two helicopters, two hand crews, a hotshot crew and three bulldozers are all assigned to the fire. The Western Montana Type 3 Incident Management Team, led by Ken Parks — the deputy director of the Missoula County Emergency Management Department — assumed command of the incident on Monday. Firefighters were busy over the weekend with structure protection. (Information on what structures were being protected was not immediately available.) The fire started near Locust Hill in Plains and is burning along Highway 28 near Rainbow Lake. Fueling the fire is open timber, and a 'full suppression response' is being implemented per the fire's Inciweb situation report. Fire officials asked the public to stay away from the area. The state's Department of Natural Resources and Conservation media liaison listed for the fire did not immediately return a request for comment. Montana could be gearing up for a long fire season. National Interagency Fire Center maps predict 'greater than usual' likelihood of significant wildfires for half of the state by July and nearly all of it come August. 'Wildfires are a reality in Montana each year, but thanks to increased funding and innovative technology, DNRC is more prepared than ever before to respond quickly and effectively,' Gov. Greg Gianforte said in a press release last week. 'While our teams are equipped and ready to protect homes and communities in the event of wildfire, we also need every Montanan to take simple steps to join us in our efforts to keep our state safe.' Gianforte signed two wildfire bills earlier this month, while vetoing two others that would have impacted local fire departments. How wildfires are to be fought is also a major topic both at the federal level and in the court system. The state has already had several early season wildfires, including one near Wisdom that ended up burning more than 2,000 acres. According to Montana Fire Info, nearly 350 fires have burned in the state this year so far. Rural firefighters throughout the state are starting to see things dry out. That includes Missoula Rural Fire District Lt. Phillip Mediate during an interview with the Daily Montanan regarding unseasonably warm temperatures over the weekend. 'We've had a pretty good wet spring,' Mediate said on Saturday morning. 'We're starting to see the spike in temperatures now. I think the fire danger has moved to moderate, just in the last couple of days, so we're starting to see those grasses dry out … we're starting to head into that season.'
Yahoo
02-05-2025
- Yahoo
Burn permits required for spring burning season in Lincoln Co.
May 2—LIBBY — Starting Thursda 1, Lincoln County residents are required to obtain a burn permit for all residential yard cleanup burning through June 30. Permits are free and can be obtained or renewed online through the Montana Burn Permit and Notification Service at: Once a permit is secured, it must be activated each day burning is conducted, either online or by phone at 406-283-2442. Debris burning is a great way to clear dead vegetation and reduce fire hazards around your home and property. However, debris burning remains one of the leading causes of human-caused fires in northwestern Montana. To ensure your burn doesn't become the next wildfire, take the necessary precautions: — Check the local spot weather forecast before you begin burning. Pay close attention to wind conditions for both the day of and day after your burn. — Burn early in the day, when humidity is higher. — Keep burn piles small, manageable, and attended at all times. — Do no burn garbage, plastic or treated wood as they release toxic chemicals into the air. — Have adequate tools and water supply on site, such as a charged hose, buckets, and shovel. — Check the area the next day to ensure no hot spots remain, especially in tree roots and stumps. — If your burn escapes control, call 911 immediately. For seasonal burn schedules, air quality information, and agency contact information, visit The Department of Natural Resources and Conservation urges the public to do their part in preventing wildfires this spring. For more information on fire prevention and preparedness, visit
