- Prescribed burns can destroy pests that kill plants that wildlife rely on for food. Prescribed burning also helps manage invasive plant species. Invasive species do not naturally occur in the area in which they are found and can crowd out species that do. Prescribed burns help make space for these native species and restore balance to wildlands (National Wildlife Federation, n.d.).
- Prescribed burns can regenerate wildlands by returning nutrients back to the soil, which can support new plant growth. These young plants are great food for wildlife (USDA Forest Service, n.d.-a).
- Wildlands contain dead plant material, such as shrubs, grasses, fallen logs and pine needles, that add nutrients to the soil. However, under certain conditions, this plant material can be fuel for wildfires. Prescribed burning reduces the amount of this fuel available during a wildfire, allowing dead plant materials to be burned in an environment where the fire management team has more control over the fire. By burning dead plant material during optimal weather conditions, less of these plant materials are available to burn later. This can lead to fewer or less intense wildfires in the future (Long & Oxarart, 2017).
- If a wildfire was to occur in an area where a prescribed burn occurred, it would likely be less severe and easier for firefighters to contain (The Nature Conservancy, 2024).
- By helping to reduce the frequency and severity of wildfires, prescribed burns can help prevent destruction of homes and businesses that may have been in a wildfire’s path (USDA Forest Service, n.d.-a).