Plans are coming together for prescribed burns at Turkey Mountain.
The master plan for the wilderness area River Parks Authority adopted last year calls for burning to clear out overgrowth and promote a healthier forest. River Parks Event Coordinator Ryan Howell said Oklahoma Forestry Services is working on what he calls the "prescription" for the prescribed burns. a plan that takes into account weather conditions and the state of the urban wilderness.
"Hopefully, we’ll have that maybe by September. It just depends on what the fire season looks like for them. And then if the stars align, we might be able to burn as early as February or March next year. That’s if the stars align and everything works well, but the great news is they have funding to pay themselves," Howell said.
OFS applied for a $40,000 grant to put toward its costs of the burns. River Parks has received some equipment it will use for burns done by its staff. State foresters will train them this summer.
Howell said he recently hiked in Cookson Wildlife Management Area south of Tahlequah just after they’d performed a prescribed burn.
"When you burn the mountain, it doesn’t look great for a few months. But after that, if you go back there in two or three months, it’ll look amazing," Howell said.
A consultant told River Parks last year it takes several years to see the full effects of prescribed burning.
