Tahoe Fire & Fuels Team members may continue prescribed fire operations this week at Lake Tahoe as conditions and weather allow. The Nevada Division of Forestry is scheduled to burn hand piles near Incline Village and the USDA Forest Service may continue operations near Baldwin Beach. Smoke will be present. For current air quality, visit AirNow. View the project map with locations and details at Tahoe Living With Fire. Prescribed fires are a vital forest management ecological tool used by land managers to help protect communities by removing excess vegetation (fuels) that can feed unwanted wildland fires. Burning excess vegetation also benefits forest health by making room for new growth which provides forage for wildlife, recycles nutrients back into the soil and helps reduce the spread of insects and disease in forests. Winter typically brings cooler temperatures and precipitation, which are ideal for conducting prescribed fires.