The Down East North Carolina Prescribed Burn Association.

-Field Notes-

For local landowners, land managers, fire practitioners, and subject experts to share information, resources, and experiences and to better equip each other in order to establish more prescribed fire acres, further enhancing the multiple resources of our forests.

January, 2026

Current Situation…

Drought conditions persist across our state. They exist in part due to a lack of tropical activity last summer and fall that provides our area with much of its annual rainfall. Prolonged days since appreciable rainfall has extended this dry time. Along our coastal areas, however, there has been some occasional relief allowing the Keetch-Byram Drought Index (KDBI) to fall within acceptable ranges in many areas for the time being. It’s also worthy to note that prolonged drought provides the drying time needed for larger diameter fuels, potentially increasing the fire intensity of our burns.

We’ll need to carefully consider these factors in any current burn planning and implementation. Spend time walking the tract. Pull back the leaves and straw and find where the moisture is in the litter or duff layer. Prolonged duff smoldering can have severe consequences and permanently damage root systems, not to mention increased mop-up and risk of fire escape. Also monitor your local fire danger forecast and any potential weather advisory.

Reach out to the PBA for information and assistance in evaluating fire and fuel conditions. We’re here to help. See below the current US Drought Monitor map and KDBI conditions for our PBA area.

2026 NCFS Certified Burner Courses Announcement

The NC Forest Service Certified Burner classes are typically 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. A variety of instructors assist in presenting the class which provides for a wealth of experience on hand to draw from. 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.

Fore more info on training and registration click HERE

Local Certified Burner Course?

There seems to be significant interest locally in hosting a PBA led NC Certified Burner Course. This can be done in person and allow you a more interactive environment. We’ll present the same course material mentioned above and be able to present you with the NCFS Certified Burner Certificate and the end of the class. We can offer this for those new to the material or anyone who previously took the class and would like a good refresher.

In order to gauge specific interest, click below for a quick poll.

And/or email derrick@downeastpba.org for more info.

ForestHerNC

Last month we had a chance to sit in on a local ForestHer event, held on Louise Belk’s new Longleaf Pine forest in Wayne County. Louise was a wonderful host and provided a great learning opportunity. The event was coordinated by Deanna Noble, Wildlife Conservation Biologist for NC Wildlife Resources Commission.

“ForestHerNC is an organization focused on supporting, educating, and empowering a community of women landowners and natural resources professionals to engage in forest conservation and stewardship in North Carolina. ​From the Coastal Plains and the Foothills of the Piedmont, to the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains, we engage women in woodland stewardship, and empower them to make decisions and craft the future of our forests.”

Fore more info visit: ForestHerNC.org

WRC Burn Refresher Training

A large part of the NC Wildlife Resources Commission is to manage habitats across our state game lands. This is often done with the use of prescribed fire. In our PBA area, the Central Coast unit is responsible for some 142,000 acres on 9 separate established game lands, burning on average 6-8 thousand acres a year. These burns provide for enhanced wildlife management, silvicultural and restoration practices, and greatly promote native grasses and vegetation. In addition to prescribed burning, the WRC also assist our state with wildfire suppression. This past year WRC firefighters were actively engaged on the 7,670 acre Black Cove Complex Fires as well as supporting several NC Forest Service districts around the state.

Recently, several Wildlife Resources technicians, foresters, and biologist met at the New Bern WRC depot facility to conduct refresher training and prepare the staff for upcoming dormant and growing season planned burns. This included basic wildland firefighter safety, protective gear and equipment, ignition techniques, as well as how to respond in the event of fire escape.

For more info on the NCWRC prescribed burn program, click HERE

Every day is a burn day? That phrase has been used within the prescribed fire community for some time now. It implies that today we should be out in the field, with a drip torch in hand, watching good fire move through the woods. That would certainly make for a good day, however that’s not entirely what it refers to. Yes, first and foremost it refers to the fact that we should be on the lookout for burn opportunities in the extended forecast and take advantage of those days. Even if the weather forecast isn’t perfect now; remember it’s just a forecast. Actual conditions that day may vary, and might just vary in your favor.

In reality though, implementing the burn itself is the easy part, and here’s where “every day is a burn day” also applies. Planning, preparation, educating, and communicating the burn project takes a tremendous amount of time. There’s a burn plan to write, maps to be made, fuel breaks to lay out. Do the burn objectives line up with your management plan? Does it align with planned timber harvest or thinning? Does it match the time of year that targets the wildlife you’re managing for? Lots of research, discussion, and coordination obviously must take place. Now factor in any potential cost-share or funding application process and you may have to invest even more time.

So maybe every day just might be a burn day. Rather than focus on the end result, focus on the process. Invest in the project planning phases and be proactive well enough in advance so there’s no rush or pressure to take additional risk when the weather, conditions, and timing are just right. Make every day a burn day.

Derrick Moore

Coordinator, Down East PBA

derrick@downeastpba.org