An inside look at DEEP's prescribed burning program around Connecticut

The state is starting fires in specific locations to help the environment. It’s all part of the state’s prescribed burn program and they allowed us access to observe the work being done.

Conditions had to be perfect, and Thursday morning, a window opened for the group to burn in specific sections along the Massachusetts border in Suffield.

This was the state's second prescribed burn of the year and totaled 70 acres.

Their goal with this burn was to encourage fresh vegetation for upland sandpiper, grasshopper sparrow, eastern meadowlark and savannah sparrow - all grass nesting birds, according to DEEP.

The wildlife management area went up in flames around 10:30 a.m. Thursday, but you won’t find the local fire department on site.  

“This is grass burning for bird habitats,” Tom Trask, forest protection supervisor with CT DEEP, said as we watched a small section of dead grass get burned.

He explained the conditions were perfect, neighbors were warned, and they were able to go ahead with the burn. He see’s this burning, as essential.

“Prescribed burning is a really good thing and its controlled, we do it safely, we notify everybody,” Trask said.

This is one of six prescribed burns around the state this spring. Reasons for the burns range from habitat management and native species encouragement, to burning underbrush to support safe and healthy forests, to keep wildfire risk low.

“It removes that excess fuel to allow for an even burn,” Trask said.

He will be the first to tell you, well-managed land is healthy and safe land. Just over the border from where we stood to observe was an area in Massachusetts that was already growing fresh grass in the wake of a prescribed burn a few weeks ago, handled by the state of Massachusetts.

Small groups are constantly on the move, lighting small areas in a methodical fashion and stepping back to allow a light breeze to keep the fire pointing in the direction of an already singed area to keep it moving slow, as dead grass goes up in flames.

The groups stay close to ensure the fire doesn’t jump out of control. Around 40 people were on hand Thursday to control a 70-acre area they planned to burn.

These controlled burns pre-date the state of Connecticut. Indigenous populations used similar burning to support certain tree growth and keep forests healthy, according to DEEP.

But it became practice to eliminate all fire from the landscape, and Americans were introduced to Smokey Bear, which in theory was good because forest fires are dangerous, according to Trask, but…“We got too good at it,” he said.

Trask said forest managers soon learned the practices of indigenous peoples was healthy, leading to practice like prescribed burning we see today.

“Now we are kind of back tracking, still promoting and do promote fire safety because we all know wildfires are dangerous and bad, and they can hurt the wildland urban interface, but prescribed burning is safe," Trask said.

So while smoke may bellow into the sky, and the fire itself may be intimidating, it's handled by professionals under strict parameters.

And while we press on through the usual brush fire season here in Connecticut, Trask pointed out the usual reminders still apply.

“Be safe with fire, notify immediately if you come across a fire out of control,” he said.