The Bureau of Land Management and the U.S. Wildland Fire Service have officially launched their fall and winter prescribed burning season across the Pacific Northwest, with operations planned throughout Oregon, Washington, and northern Idaho as favorable weather, fuel moisture, and air quality conditions allow.

The coordinated multi-agency effort represents a critical window to treat fire-prone landscapes before the return of dry conditions. After a 2026 fire season that torched more than 3 million combined acres across Oregon and Washington, land managers are eager to use the available off-season to build fuel breaks and reduce hazardous fuel loads that could feed next summer's fires.

Northern Idaho: BLM Leads Multi-Week Burns

Beginning this month and continuing through December, the BLM Coeur d'Alene Field Office — in coordination with the U.S. Wildland Fire Service — will conduct a series of prescribed burns across northern Idaho on Bureau of Land Management-administered lands. The burns are designed to reduce ladder fuels, promote native grassland recovery, and decrease the risk of large-scale wildfire in an area that experienced significant fire activity in recent years.

Smoke may be visible from surrounding communities and highways during burning operations. The BLM coordinates with the Idaho Department of Environmental Quality and monitors air quality conditions before igniting any prescribed fire.

Oregon: Forest Service and BLM Ramp Up

Across Oregon, multiple national forests are actively conducting or preparing for prescribed fire work. Active prescribed fire operations currently listed on InciWeb in Oregon include:

  • Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest: Fall prescribed burning operations are ongoing across multiple districts, with understory burns and pile burning planned across the forest's southern Oregon footprint.
  • Wallowa-Whitman National Forest: Pile burning underway at multiple units, including the Bird Track, Starvation, and Cove sites near northeastern Oregon.
  • High Cascades Ranger District: Approximately 45 acres of pile burning planned north of Prospect Ranger Station.

Why Fall Prescribed Burns Matter

Fall is one of two primary windows — alongside early spring — when land managers can safely conduct prescribed burns. Cooler temperatures, higher relative humidity, and shorter day lengths help keep fires from escaping containment lines, while curing of vegetation allows for effective fuel reduction without the risk of crown fire spread.

"Community preparedness remains an important part of wildfire risk reduction," said U.S. Wildland Fire Service officials. "By maintaining defensible space and reducing hazards around their properties, residents help increase safety in our wildland-urban interface communities."

What Residents Should Know

Residents in areas near planned prescribed burns should expect to see and smell smoke on days when burning is active. Prescribed burn operations may be delayed or cancelled if wind speeds, relative humidity, or air quality conditions fall outside acceptable prescription parameters.

Air quality information is available from the Idaho Department of Environmental Quality, Oregon DEQ, and Washington's Department of Ecology. Those with respiratory conditions should monitor local air quality indices and limit outdoor exposure on heavy smoke days. The next major issuance of the NIFC's national fire outlook is scheduled for December 1.