BLM Announces Fire Restrictions for Lands Managed by Arcata Field Office

Effective July 1, the Bureau of Land Management is implementing fire restrictions for lands managed by the Arcata Field Office in Humboldt, Del Norte, Trinity and Mendocino counties.  The restrictions will remain in effect until further notice.

Field Office Manager Lynda Roush said the restrictions are needed because of dry fuels and increasing fire danger in the North Coast region.  She said wildfires under these conditions can pose threats to public land visitors, natural resources and adjacent private lands and communities.

Under the restrictions, all campfires and barbecues are prohibited except in specifically posted campgrounds and recreation sites.  Portable stoves and lanterns using gas, jellied petroleum or pressurized liquid fuel are allowed outside of posted recreation sites, with a valid California campfire permit.  The public is asked to be extremely careful with their use and to carry a shovel and water at all times.

Other restrictions include:
• No smoking, except within an enclosed vehicle or building, or at a designated, developed recreation site, or other designated areas.
• No motor vehicles off of established roads or trails.
• No shooting using incendiary, tracer, steel core or armor-piercing ammunition.
• No fireworks, including “safe and sane” devices. An exemption is in place for July Fourth only, when state fire marshal-approved “safe and sane” fireworks may be used within designated areas  on Black Sands and Mattole beaches in the King Range National Conservation Area, and the Samoa Dunes Recreation Area on the north side of Humboldt Bay near Eureka.

The BLM advises homeowners to “Take Responsibility” and keep 100 feet of clean, open space around their homes to provide defensible space and improve the chance that their homes and families can  be saved in an uncontrolled wildfire.

For more information, contact the Arcata Field Office at (707) 825-2300.

Northern California District   355 Hemsted Dr.      Redding, CA 96002