< All Press Releases

BLM Conducts Prescribed Burns to Reduce Wildfire Risk in Northern Idaho

Organization:

Bureau of Land Management

BLM Office:

Coeur d'Alene District Office

Media Contact:

Hand piles burning under timber canopy
Prescribed pile burns in Lynch Gulch.

COEUR D’ALENE, Idaho – Beginning in November 2026, and continuing through December 2026, the BLM in coordination with the US Wildland Fire Service will conduct a series of prescribed burns across northern Idaho on Bureau of Land Management lands. These prescribed burns aim to reduce hazardous fuel accumulations, enhance forest health and landscape resiliency, protect wildlife habitats, and improve firefighter and public safety by reducing wildfire risks. Burn activities, listed below, will proceed as weather, staffing, and on-ground conditions allow; acreages are approximate:

Coeur d'Alene Field Office

  • Blackwell Hand Piles (4 acres) – Coeur d’Alene, ID.
  • Mica Bay Hand Piles (13 acres) – Coeur d’Alene, ID.
  • Pine Solo Hand Piles (145 acres) – Pinehurst, ID.
  • High and Dry Machine Piles (50 acres) – Pinehurst, ID.
  • Pine Solo Machine Piles (50 acres) – Pinehurst, ID.
  • Blue Creek Machine Piles (1 acre) – Coeur d’Alene, ID.
  • Windy Bay Hand Piles (11 acres) – Worley, ID.
  • Huckleberry Campground Hand Piles (1 acre) – Calder, ID.
  • Killarney Hand Piles (1 acre) – Cataldo, ID.

Cottonwood Field Office

  • Admin sites along the Salmon River/Highway 95 corridor
  • Buffalo Gulch Hand Piles (34 acres) – Elk City, ID.
  • Happy Trails Hand Piles (257 acres) – Adams County, ID.
  • Happy Trails Machine Piles (338 acres) – Adams County, ID.
  • Marshall Mountain Hand Piles (85 acres) – Riggins, ID.
  • Off the Rail Machine Piles (15 acres) – White Bird, ID.

What the public should know 

  • During prescribed burns, smoke may settle in low-lying areas overnight. 
  • Residents are encouraged to close windows at night to avoid smoke impacts. 
  • When driving in smoky areas, drivers should slow down and turn on headlights. 
  • People with heart or lung disease, asthma, or other chronic conditions should ask their doctors about protecting themselves from smoke and should monitor their local air quality map. 

Each prescribed burn operation is expected to last one to two days. Due to the proximity to local communities, smoke from these prescribed burns will be visible from nearby areas. The public can also expect to see personnel and equipment patrolling and monitoring these areas for several days.

These prescribed burns are part of the Administration’s focus to reduce wildfire risk, improve forest and rangeland health, and protect nearby communities. The BLM is using targeted fuels treatments to reduce the amount of vegetation and other fuels that can feed severe wildfires on public lands.

BLM is committed to reducing wildfires risks through proactive fuel management. BLM Idaho carries out up to 25% of all BLM fuels treatment acres nationwide, making these projects an important part of the broader effort to reduce the risk of catastrophic wildfires. The work takes place in phases over multiple years, using carefully planned prescribed burns and other fuels treatments.

For BLM’s specific project information in Northern Idaho, contact BLM Coeur d’Alene District Office at 208-769-5000, and visit the North Idaho Prescribed Fire story map. 

The BLM manages about 245 million acres of public land located primarily in 12 western states, including Alaska, on behalf of the American people. The BLM also administers 700 million acres of sub-surface mineral estate throughout the nation. Our mission is to sustain the health, diversity, and productivity of America’s public lands for the use and enjoyment of present and future generations.