Forest Service News Release

Public Information Officer: Kirstie Butler

[email protected]

760-647-3004
www.fs.usda.gov/inyo
Facebook @InyoNF

Prescribed Fires Planned for Spring and Summer on Inyo National Forest

BISHOP, Calif., April 1, 2026 — Over the next several weeks and into the early part of this summer, Inyo National Forest fire personnel along with supporting resources from neighboring agencies will target prescribed fire operations to improve ecosystem health and reduce hazardous fuels on potentially all Ranger Districts of the Forest.

Mount Whitney Ranger District

The first potential prescribed fire will be broadcast burning of up to 59 acres of the Granite View RX burn, which is Unit 9 of the 2019 Alabama Hills Defensible Space Fuels Reduction Project. This unit is also known locally as the Diaz Pasture. Firefighters have been preparing for the burn and monitoring conditions over the last several months in anticipation of fuel moisture and weather coming into alignment as early as next week. This burn requires prescription parameters to be within a precise range to allow for a certain amount of consumption while moderating fire effects and spread. Ignition should last several days and then will be extinguished once objectives are met.

White Mountain Ranger District

The second potential prescribed fire will be broadcast burning of up to 2,693 acres of the Casa Diablo/Crowley Understory RX, which falls under the 2011 Casa Diablo Maintenance Prescribed Burning Project and the 2010 Crowley Communities Fuels Reduction Project. The units targeted this spring are located on the eastern and western edges of the Sunny Slopes community, east and north of Pine Glade, further east of Sunny Slopes, and north of the Owens River Gorge. This burn also requires prescription parameters to be within a precise range to allow for a certain amount of consumption while moderating fire effects and spread. Depending on resource availability and weather conditions, firefighters will implement as efficiently as possible to meet objectives.

North Zone: Mono Lake and Mammoth Ranger Districts

The third potential prescribed fire will be up to 2,193 acres of broadcast burning along the Highway 395 corridor north of the Town of Mammoth Lakes and south of the south June Loop junction. This North Zone project falls under the 2007 Jeffrey Pine Forest Health & Fuel Reduction Project Environmental Assessment and the 2018 Three Creeks Jeffrey Pine Forest Health and Restoration Project Environmental Assessment.

“Fire management personnel have been diligently working to reduce fuels, restore ecosystem health, and restore fire resilience by reestablishing fire’s natural role in the ecosystem,” said Jeffrey Karl, White Mountain Ranger District Fire Management Officer (Acting) for the USDA Forest Service.

“We recognize the impact this has on the public and we appreciate their patience and understanding while we manage this dynamic project and our efforts to improve their public lands for the greater good.”

 

Updates will be released as they become available via:

Facebook: www.facebook.com/inyonf

Forest website: www.fs.usda.gov/alerts/inyo/alerts-notices

 

Smoke and flame may be visible from many miles away, including from Highway 395 and the nearby communities. Smoke impacts are minimized as much as possible in coordination with the Great Basin Unified Air Pollution Control District and National Weather Service meteorologists to ensure desired weather patterns and smoke dispersal are in place in order to minimize impacts to communities, highways, and adjacent residences.

Smoke will drift and settle into the valleys, especially at night. This includes low-lying areas such as Highway 395, creeks, and river drainages. If necessary, smoke-sensitive individuals may need to take precautions to minimize smoke impacts. Visit https://fire.airnow.gov/ to check particulate levels before you visit the Owens Valley area in general.

For more specific air quality information visit:
www.gbuapcd.org/AirMonitoringData/Smoke/#6.85/37.413/-117.864

For a multimedia album of the prescribed burns conducted on Inyo National Forest, visit our Region 5 Pacific Southwest Region’s Flickr page at: https://flic.kr/s/aHBqjANbk5

###