Important terms to remember:

Fire-A rapid, persistent chemical change that releases heat and light and is accompanied by flame.
Fuel Load-The fuel that is made available from dead, decaying, or low-lying flora (plants) on the forest floor.  Usually, the density of the flora will raise the intensity of the burn. 
Prescribed Burning-Establishing a direction for a fire to move based on weather, habitat type, soil, and other biological factors; predetermining the habitat to be burned and the movement of the fire through the specific habitat under specific parameters established in a unit prescription prepared by a certified burn boss.  

Why are we burning?

The University of Central Florida's Biology Department has seen a need for campus prescribed burning to occur, especially after the natural fire took flight in a thunder storm last year.  Fortunately, this fire was quickly controlled and was far away from residential areas.  To prevent instances such as these, it is important to lower the fuel load in areas that have not been burned in a while by doing controlled or prescribed burning.  Think of a fire place.  If it is a cold day, you would want to add a lot of dry wood to your fire to make a larger and hotter fire.  The forest acts the same way.  The more dead, decaying, or low-lying plants on the forest floor, the hotter the fire will be.  This is why it is important to limit the fuel in the site by mechanical removal followed by a routine prescribed burn.  

Where is the burn?

The first phase of the burn will included 26 acres of land on the east side of campus.  This site was burned in 1995 and was the first of a series of burns on UCF's campus.  Old trail breaks were restored and will be used to prevent the fire from jumping to outside forested areas.  Also, mechanical removal and other preventative methods were used in heavily fueled areas (places where the underbrush is to dense to burn) to control the area being burned.  To see a map of phase one of the burn plan and additional burn plans, please click here.

Who is making the burn plans?

The University of Central Florida's Prescribed Fire Coordinator as well as the Fire Committee will be involved in the development of the campus prescribed fire plan.  An ensemble of fire scholars, including individuals from the Florida Division of Forestry, Orange County Fire Rescue, and the Nature Conservancy, collectively serve on the Fire Committee.  This committee meets as needed to develop and better the campus burn plan and will serve as the liaison between the University and the surrounding community.  The Nature Conservancy was contracted to write the prescription for the Spring 2005 burn, but the University has taken this responsibility for all upcoming burns.

Who will be doing the actual burning?

UCF faculty, staff, and students will be on the burn site monitoring the fire at all times.  Outside organizations, including the Florida Division of Forestry, Orange  County Fire Rescue, and the Nature Conservancy will also be involved in controlling the fire.  All personnel involved in the fire have been trained and/or certified to do controlled burning in the state of Florida.

What if I live near the burn area?

If you live near UCF and are concerned about the fire the best measure to take is to email the Prescribed Fire Coordinator by clicking here.  All questions and concerns will be answered as soon as possible, as we are interested in your input and want you to feel safe during the prescribed burn.

Additional Information:

For a printable brochure, please click here.  Updates are made daily to this site, so please visit it frequently or email one of our staff members to receive additional information about upcoming burns.

Burn Site in the UCF Arboretum