The Nature Conservancy in Minnesota

The Central Minnesota Community Outreach and Oak/Pine Forest Fuel Reduction Initiative

The Fire and Forest Management Initiative works to protect people and nature and manage native plant communities and wildlife by restoring and maintaining the health of our forests. In areas of central Minnesota, a policy of fire exclusion over the last 100 years has resulted in overcrowded forests that contain dangerous amounts of fuel. This threatens both human life and property as well as habitats that are important for conservation.

Why is Fire Important?

Historically this region was characterized by a more open forest, with far less brush and small trees. Prior to European settlement, fire was a key process in shaping the composition and structure of central Minnesota’s forests, particularly the oak and pine forests associated with drier sites. They depend on fire to stay healthy, and some plant species within the forests need fire to facilitate regeneration. The cones of some pine species in this region will not open unless exposed to intense heat.

Additionally, the crowded conditions found in forests where fire has been excluded limit sunlight reaching the forest floor, reducing the likelihood that certain species, including oaks, will germinate and flourish. In the absence of fire or other disturbance forces, our oak and pine forests will gradually change into some other type of ecosystem – they will not resemble the forests of today..

What the Conservancy is Doing

The Nature Conservancy’s framework for addressing fire-related conservation threats is called Integrated Fire Management. This is a way to reconcile the fire-related needs of both people and nature by working with communities to weigh the benefits and risks posed by fire in a given place and develop solutions.

Management actions aimed at restoring habitats in central Minnesota also serve to reduce the risk of wildfires harming communities. The Conservancy and its partners are working with communities in to develop plans for mechanical removal of brush and other natural fuels in conjunction with prescribed fires. Reducing fuel loads is necessary in historically fire-dependent forest systems to provide areas that are defensible against high-intensity fire spread.. We also provide training for local natural resource personnel and work to increase public awareness through increased educational and outreach efforts.

Links
Fire Management Glossary
Integrated Fire Management
Global Fire Initiative
The Conservancy's fire practitioners web site

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The Central Minnesota Community Outreach and Oak/Pine Forest Fuel Reduction Initiative

Why is Fire Important?

What the Conservancy is Doing