Governor Sonny Perdue has designated by official proclamation the first week in February to be observed annually as Georgia Prescribed Fire Awareness Week in recognition of land managers who protect and maintain the state’s forest resources. This year, the dates are Sunday, Feb. 3, through Saturday, Feb. 9.

Prescribed fire is a safe way to apply a natural process, ensure ecosystem health and reduce wildfire risks. Healthy forests provide clean air and water and diverse wildlife populations for Georgia’s residents and visitors.

From 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday, Feb. 4, the Georgia Prescribed Fire Council (GAPFC) will display exhibits about the benefits of prescribed fire in the south wing of the Georgia Capitol. The Fire Council works with the Georgia Forestry Commission (GFC) and other cooperators to encourage the exchange of information, techniques and experience among practitioners of prescribed burning in Georgia. In 2007, the council received the Pulaski Award, a national award for excellence given by the national fire directors.

GFC advocates prescribed burning as one of the most environmentally and economically feasible methods for managing the state’s valuable forest resources. Professional foresters and other land managers throughout the state use prescribed burning for reforestation, aesthetics and forest access.

As a land management tool, prescribed fire is essential for managing wildlife species such as bobwhite quail, eastern wild turkey, white-tailed deer, many songbirds, the endangered redcockaded woodpecker and many other fire-dependent species. Prescribed burning is the only known forest management method that perpetuates the longleaf/wiregrass ecosystem, Georgia’s most diverse flora and fauna ecosystem.

Georgia Prescribed Fire Council members include the Albany Area Game Management Project, consulting foresters, Georgia Forestry Association, Georgia Forestry Commission, Georgia Department of Natural Resources’ Wildlife Resources Division, Georgia Heritage and Wildlife Conservation Association, Georgia Wildlife Federation, Joseph W. Jones Ecological Research Center, National Park Service, The Nature Conservancy, private landowners and managers, Tall Timbers Research Station, University of Georgia Warnell School of Forest Resources, U.S.D.A. Natural Resources Conservation Service, U.S. Department of Defense, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the U.S. Forest Service.

For more information or prescribed burning assistance, call your local Georgia Forestry Commission office or visit the GFC Web site at www.gatrees.org.