Pacific Union College continues to build fire resilience on its forest properties with a successful 13-acre planned burn

Pacific Union College (PUC) partnered with the CAL Fire Sonoma-Lake-Napa Unit and the Napa County Fire Department to conduct a prescribed burn on 13 acres of the college's Angwin Forest property on May 1, 2024, successfully managing overgrown vegetation and improving forest health. and strengthen fire resilience.

These efforts demonstrate PUC’s ongoing commitment to environmental stewardship and community safety.

PUC Forestry Director Peter Lecourt called the successful burn a victory for the PUC, Angwin and Napa County, paving the way for future prescribed burns.

“I’m thrilled that this project went so smoothly,” Lecourt said. “Many partners played a role in preparing the burn unit before the project, as well as helping on the day we conducted the operation. I would like to thank CAL Fire, Napa County Fire, Napa Firewise, the Angwin Fire Safe Council, the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, and the Napa County Resource Conservation District. Without the help of these partners, this project would not have been possible.

The burn lasted approximately nine hours, with the assistance of numerous trained wildland firefighters, four fire trucks and a water dispenser.

The PUC, CAL Fire Sonoma-Lake-Napa Unit, and the Napa County Fire Department carefully planned and strategically coordinated efforts identifying the area and date of the burn, meeting strict benefit criteria environmental parameters, weather parameters, smoke management and fire safety guidelines. Once the burn was complete, crews monitored and patrolled the project throughout the night and for several days.

“In order to protect members of the Pope Valley community in Angwin, the Ridgeline Fuel Reduction Project is crucial,” said Erick Hernandez, deputy fire marshal for the Napa County Fire Department. “Over the past five years, we and PUC have focused on removing lighter fuels from the forest: additional dead and dying brush was burned during this prescribed burn in an effort to reduce wildfires fast moving. Like PUC, other community members can reduce the fuel load around their homes and on their private properties.

“In efforts to build fire resilience in the community, we need community participation,” Hernandez said. “Ensuring you reduce fuel loads can be as simple as removing brush from around your home. »

PUC continues to work with the Napa County Fire Department to identify prescribed burns in the future, including several potential projects in the fall.

For more information about fire safety or controlled burning and its benefits, visit fire.ca.gov.