Alaska’s Division of Forestry is already concerned about the potential for another extreme fire season because of the lack of snow across the state this winter.
The Division’s Soldotna Area Forester Hans Rinke…
Rinke: “Obviously it’s still somewhat early into the early here but we’re seeing a winter that’s paralleling the last two winters of low snowfall and what that can mean for us here on the Kenai is an earlier fire season. Our fire season here is dependent on having fuels available to burn and as soon as that snow melts, those grasses and other fine fuels are available to burn.”
With that in mind, he suggests people pay close attention to permit guidelines if they plan on debris burning or campfires.
Rinke: “You’re required by state law to have a permit to burn and part of that permit is following certain guidelines, burning guidelines, which require you to have water while you’re burning, have hand tools while your burning, and be present while you’re burning.”
The division is also comparing this year’s “godzilla” El Nino to the very strong one that occurred in 1997 to see what kind of fire conditions they might need to prepare for.
While it did not compare to 2015’s 5.1 million acres burned statewide, Alaska’s summer before 1997’s El Nino winter saw 773 fires burn two million acres.