When Fire Is a Friend: Prescribed Burns at Camp

During the month of March, our maintenance and property team, partnering with the Cedar Mountain Fire Department, utilized their expertise to perform a small number of “prescribed burns” on the Camp Greenville property. Have you heard of a prescribed burn before?

Here’s what you need to know: Prescribed burns are a forest/land management technique that can be safely performed (with the right training and equipment - don’t try this at home!) for a number of different reasons, including to reduce the risk of wildfire by removing hazardous fuels such as low growing vegetation, and to remove the potential habitat of unwanted critters (such as rodents) to prevent them from creating homes near our buildings and program areas.

In some cases, prescribed burns are also used as a management tool to stimulate the natural regeneration of a forest area. An added bonus for us, at 3500’ elevation, is that removing brush opens the line-of-sight to beautiful views of the Upstate below YMCA Camp Greenville.

This is just one example of how our entire YCG team uses the spring months to prepare our property and our program for summer fun!

See more photos below from the day our team performed a prescribed burn on a hill near our athletic field: