Formation of the North Central Texas Prescribed Burn Association

Thirty people expressed interest in rebuilding the North Central Texas Prescribed Burn Association (NCTPBA) at the Wise County Fire Convention on Saturday – an important step in containing wildfires on private property in the county and beyond.

The fire safety conference was attended by approximately 60 participants, including ranch managers, property owners and citizens interested in doing their part to prevent the next wildfire from reaching their homes.

The event was created by the Wise County Office of Emergency Management (WCOEM) after recognizing the threat of wildfires and the limited scope of prevention measures for the majority of Wise County's open rangelands located on private lands.

Prescribed burns reduce fuel loads, slow the progression of wildfires, and in some cases create a buffer for residential areas to prevent further destruction.

However, conducting burns on private lands is the responsibility of landowners and managers, and barriers to entry include the cost, equipment, and labor required to properly conduct burns. The goal of a Prescribed Burn Association (PBA) is to bridge this gap and create a group that shares equipment, manpower, and other resources to make performing burns easier and less expensive.

A large group of potential NCTPBA members lined up after the conference, held Saturday at the Decatur Conference Center. Alayna Payne, WCOEM hazard mitigation coordinator, said next steps will include setting some meeting dates, forming a board of directors and updating the NCTBA bylaws. Annual membership is expected to cost $25.

With help from the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension office, the idea was to revitalize the NCTPBA, ​​whose membership gradually dwindled to one member. The event included a keynote address by Dr. Morgan Treadwell, an outreach extension specialist at Texas A&M AgriLife who has dedicated her career to prescribed burning and livestock pasture management. She spoke about the importance of burning in wildfire containment and as a general land management tool. The event also featured presentations from Texas A&M Forest Service Regional Director Boe Adler, WCOEM Coordinator Cody Powell and Wise County Commissioner Kevin Burns, with 16 exhibitors presenting information about their respective organizations.

A rancher also donated a prescribed burn device.

“Several ranchers came to us and told us, 'This is something we've always needed,'” Payne said.

The NCTBA will extend beyond Wise County. Conference attendees include prospective members from several North Texas counties that do not currently have an active PBA.

“We are revising the PBA for North Central Texas, which includes many of the counties west of us. It will affect all of North Texas for now as there are PBAs in other regions of Texas,” Payne said. “If you look at the map of existing associations, you can see how great the need is in North Texas. We will try to cover this large area, but if there is enough interest per county, we can break it down by chapter.”

Payne hopes to present more information and next steps for the NCTPBA at the Wise County Rancher's Gathering on Oct. 14 at First Baptist Church Decatur, 1200 Preskitt Road.

For more information about joining the NCTPBA, ​​call (940) 627-5870 or email [email protected].