7. Fire Management - continued

Some general principles of fire management to follow for protecting water resources are:

• Intense prescribed fire should not cause excessive sedimentation due to the combined effect of removal of canopy species and the loss of soil-binding ability of subcanopy and herbaceous vegetation roots, especially in SMZs, in streamside vegetation for small ephemeral drainages, or on very steep slopes.

• Prescriptions for prescribed fire should protect against excessive erosion or sedimentation to the extent practicable.

• All bladed firelines, for prescribed fire and wildfire, should be plowed on contour or stabilized with water bars and/or other appropriate techniques if needed to control excessive sedimentation or erosion of the fireline.

• Wildfire suppression and rehabilitation should consider possible nonpoint source pollution of watercourses, while recognizing the safety and operational priorities of fighting wildfires.

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