Fire Management, Paynes Creek National Park

The rangers from T.I.D.E annually use prescribed burning to manage the savanna and grasslands of the Paynes Creek National Park, Toledo District, Belize.

By Alastair Daly

From Wikipedia: Controlled or prescribed burning, also known as hazard reduction burning[1] (HRB), backfire, or swailing, is a technique sometimes used in forest management, farming, prairie restoration or greenhouse gas abatement. Fire is a natural part of both forest and grassland ecology and controlled fire can be a tool for foresters. Hazard reduction or controlled burning is conducted during the cooler months to reduce fuel buildup and decrease the likelihood of serious hotter fires.[2] Controlled burning stimulates the germination of some desirable forest trees, and reveals soil mineral layers which increases seedling vitality, thus renewing the forest. Some cones, such as those of Lodgepole Pine and Sequoia, are serotinous, as well as many chaparral shrubs, meaning they require heat from fire to open cones to disperse seeds.