Deschutes Collaborative Forest Project members Ed Keith and Nicole Strong visited an area of the Milli Fire where restoration had been implemented west and south of Sisters earlier in the year. Thinning, mowing, and prescribed burning in the area helped reduce the intensity and duration of a portion of the Milli fire, making it easier to extinguish, and keeping private lands in the area protected.
From cutting trees to mowing brush, to conducting controlled burns, there is a lot of work going on in the forests around Central Oregon. Have you wondered why?
The forest ecosystems of the east Cascades of Central Oregon are complex. All of them are forests that are historically adapted to fire. Forest restoration efforts work to make our communities and firefighters safer, and the forest healthier and more resilient to fire, insects and disease, and climatic extremes.
Restoration treatments like thinning, mowing and prescribed fire address the overly-dense conditions resulting from the lack of frequent, low-intensity fires that were a natural part of our fire-adapted forests.
