Yes, you did smell smoke. Yes, there was a fire. No, it was not a bad thing. T Clearing away the leaf “litter” on
the forest floor. If this is not done occasionally, the leaves, twigs and other debris build up and provide fuel for a potentially larger, hotter and devastating wildfire in the future.
T Permitting nutrient cycling – that is,
nutrients that were tied up in dead leaves and twigs are released after being burned and mixed back into the soil, benefiting the living trees and shrubs.
T Clearing out species of shrubs and
plants that are competing with trees for space, light and nutrients. Essentially, fire turns back the hands of time in an ecological community.
T Preserving and creating habitat for
wildlife, including quail, turkey, deer and even endangered species such as the red-cockaded woodpecker and gopher tortoise.
T Opening up the tree canopy allowing
sunlight to hit the ground, promoting new growth which is, in turn, beneficial to all wildlife. Despite all of these highly beneficial reasons to utilize prescribed burning in the landscape, the practice is under attack. Many people see it as a nuisance, not understanding why burning is beneficial and necessary for certain forms of wildlife and for the forest itself to survive. As reported in SC Wildlife Magazine, “Research indicates the volume of smoke produced by a prescribed fire is less than that produced during a wildfire, according to the SC Prescribed Fire Council.”