Prescribed burn planned for Lyonia Preserve

Volusia County’s Land Management staff will conduct a five-acre prescribed burn in Lyonia Preserve tomorrow, Dec. 29. There should be little or no smoke impact on the surrounding areas with the anticipated north-northeast wind and a high smoke dispersion.

The burn will restore and maintain habitat for scrub wildlife, which includes Florida scrub jays and gopher tortoises.

Historically, nature provided all the tools needed to maintain healthy habitats of natural lands. With the advent of fire suppression, fragmentation due to development, exotic species and user impacts, most natural lands are overgrown. Human intervention is now needed to provide the factors necessary for a healthy habitat.

To restore and maintain the diversity of the ecosystems, prescribed fire is one of the many tools Volusia County uses to manage conservation lands. Prescribed fire has many benefits, such as eliminating dry and overgrown vegetation, reducing the risk of wildfires, increasing seeding, fruiting and forage quality in plants, and improving wildlife habitats. While other land management treatments are sometimes used, prescribed fire is the most effective because of the complex chemical, biological and physical processes that fire stimulates.

For more information about prescribed burns, visit volusia.org/prescribed-burning.