The Boise National Forest is doing a 130-acre prescribed burn on May 11 and 12 in the North Fork of the Payette Drainage.
The Emmett Ranger District Firefighters will hand-ignite the land, so be prepared to see smoke in the area. Agencies have used prescribed burns for years to manage forests and land.
"It's really important," said Lance Okeson, BLM Fuels Program lead. "It's a critical tool."
They plan their prescribed burns in the spring and fall.
"Timing is critical. It is easier to control in spring because if you wait until greenup and all the other vegetation around where you are burning is green it helps you control the fire more," Okeson said. "In fall after a summer everything is dead, it is dried out and everything is carrying fire, so in the fall prescribed burns usually require more resources."