Pile burning to begin soon on the Black Hills National Forest

With the recent snowfall across the Black Hills National Forest, Ranger Districts will begin burning thousands of hand and machine slash piles. Piles are created from timber sale slash and tree thinning operations.

Piles are only ignited when managers are confident that the project can be undertaken safely with considerations to snow cover, wind, temperature, available staffing and smoke dispersal.

Public and firefighter safety is always the number-one priority in all burning operations. Firefighters continually monitor and check the piles for several days after they have been lit.

“It is very...