Community Corner
Controlled Burn For Hovnanian Sanctuary Coming Up
Burn will take place in sections along Davenport Road, south of Holiday Heights
by Patricia A. Miller
A prescribed burn along sections of Davenport Road in the Hovnanian Sanctuary will take place on or before March 15, a New Jersey Audubon Society official said recently.
"The timing of the fire will depend on weather conditions, but it will occur on or before March 15, 2014," Jean Lynch, Stewardship Project Director for the Society's southern region said in a letter to Mayor Carmen F. Amato Jr. "A trained crew will conduct the prescribed burn. Smoke management rules will be followed."
The prescribed burn will take place within sections of the forest that were thinned several years ago to reduce fuel loads and the risk of wildfire. The burn is part of the management plan presented to township officials in 2011, she said.
"There are protocols in place to notify necessary agencies on the day of the burn," Lynch said. "On the day of the burn, we and the State Forest Fire Service will make all required notification calls, including notifying emergency dispatch (911) so that they will know how to respond to calls from concerned residents as the burn is being conducted."