Down East NC Prescribed Burn Association

Who We Are

The North Carolina Down East Prescribed Burn Association. A group for local landowners, land managers, fire practitioners, and subject experts sharing information, resources, and experiences to better equip each other in order to establish more prescribed fire acres, further enhancing the multiple resources of our forests.

The Down East PBA primarily focuses on the areas of Pitt, Beaufort, Lenoir, Jones, Craven, Pamlico, Onslow, and Carteret Counties in Eastern NC, however, there are no borders, and good collaboration includes overlap with our neighboring counties and adjoining PBA’s.

If you’re on Facebook, be sure to join our group page for up to date news and opportunities.

Burn Better Smarter

Our goal is to is to facilitate the learning and experience of both new and existing prescribed fire use managers, providing for good fire on the landscape. This does several things. First, it restores natural and cultural landscapes, returning our forest vegetation and timber types to a more productive and healthy state, promoting historic species like Longleaf Pine and the Northern Bobwhite Quail. Knowledgeable landowners and managers also help educate their neighbors and local community on prescribed fire history and practices, further allowing fire use in our area. Last but not least, good prescribed fire mitigates the risk of damaging wildfires by reducing overgrown forest fuels and creating mosaic firebreaks that protect both our forest and our communities.

Burning better smarter is what we do.

On Site Project Assistance

Down East PBA resources can offer help with burn prescriptions and planning, as well as connecting you with program professionals that can guide you with every aspect of implementing projects on your property. Would you like to become a NC Certified Burner? We can help with that too.

“The General Assembly finds that prescribed burning of forestlands is a management tool that is beneficial to North Carolina's public safety, forest and wildlife resources, environment, and economy.”

-Article 80, North Carolina Prescribed Burning Act

Becoming a NC Certified Burner is not hard to do, and by doing so you also receive protection from certain liabilities when practicing fire use in a responsible manor. The North Carolina Forest Service, along with it’s partners, offers a short, hand on training course to bring you the knowledge and tools to meet all aspects of the NC Prescribed Burning Act. You don’t have to do it alone. We’re there to work with you on your own property to implement your first certification burn, and to help you build confidence to- burn better smarter.

Registration opens August 1st for the Fall 2025 NC Certified Burner Course!

Scheduled October 20th - 23rd

All 2025 Certified Burner classes will be delivered through a combination of virtual classroom sessions and in-person group field activities. Topics to be covered include North Carolina’s Prescribed Burn Act, weather, fuels, topography, fire danger rating, managing smoke, firing techniques and burn plans. Participants will need suitable hardware for virtual learning environments, i.e., laptop or tablet, microphone, as well as reliable high-speed internet. A $25 fee will be collected before the course begins.