[ updated 9/25/2011 6:30 a.m. ]
The fire danger level on Oregon Department of Forestry-protected lands in Jackson and Josephine counties decreased to "high" on Sunday, Sept. 25. This affects 1.8 million acres of state, private, county, city and Bureau of Land Management lands protected by ODF’s Southwest Oregon District. The Industrial Fire Precaution Level remains at level 2 (two).
Fire prevention regulations in the ODF-protected portion of the Wild and Scenic section of the Rogue River will change on Tuesday, Sept. 27.
Here is a summary of the public regulated use restrictions now in effect:
No open burning of debris, whether in piles or in burn barrels, is allowed;
Fireworks may not be used on forestlands;
Campfires are allowed only in designated campgrounds. Portable stoves using liquefied or bottled fuels are allowed in other locations;
Motorized vehicles are allowed only on improved roads;
Chain saws may not be used between 1:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m. During other hours, chain saw users must have an ax, a shovel and an 8-oz or larger fire extinguisher at the job site, and a fire watch is required for one hour after the saw is shut down;
Mowing of dead or dry grass with power-driven equipment is not allowed between 1:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m. This restriction does not include mowing of green lawns, or when equipment is used for the commercial culture and harvest of agricultural crops;
Cutting, grinding or welding metal are not allowed between 1:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m. These activities are allowed during other hours provided the work site is cleared of potentially flammable vegetation and other materials, and a water supply is at the job site;
Smoking while traveling is allowed only in vehicles on improved roads;
Electric fence controllers must be approved by a nationally recognized testing laboratory, such as Underwriters Laboratories Inc., or be certified by the Department of Consumer and Business Services, and be installed and used in compliance with the fence controller’s instructions for fire safe operation.
In the Wild and Scenic section of the Rogue River between Grave Creek and Marial, the following fire prevention restrictions will go into effect on Tuesday:Smoking will be prohibited while traveling, except in boats on the water, and on sand or gravel bars that lie between water and high water marks that are free of vegetation;
A shovel and a one-gallon or larger bucket must be carried by all travelers;
Fireworks will be prohibited;
Open fires will be prohibited, including campfires, cooking fires and warming fires. Portable cooking stoves using liquefied or bottled fuels, and charcoal fires for cooking and built in raised fire pans, will be allowed on sand or gravel bars that lie between water and high water marks which are free of vegetation. Ashes must be hauled out.
For further information about fire restrictions in other parts of the Wild and Scenic Section of the Rogue River, contact the Smullin Visitor Center located at the Rand National Historic Site at (541) 479-3735, or your local Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest office.
Information about fire season restrictions on ODF-protected lands is available online at http://www.swofire.oregon.gov/ and at ODF Southwest Oregon District unit offices:
Medford Unit, 5286 Table Rock Rd: (541) 664-3328
Grants Pass Unit, 5375 Monument Dr: (541) 474-3152
