Controlled Wildland Burn At The BRIT Will 'Educate, Change Cultural Mindsets'
FORT WORTH (CBSDFW.COM) - Multiple organizations collaborating for numerous scientific, educational and community benefits are on-hand this afternoon for a prescribed burn of the Botanical Research Institute of Texas (BRIT) prairie.
"This burn serves many purposes, but from our perspective, the most important is changing cultural mindsets toward acceptance of prescribed burning in Fort Worth parks, urban areas, Dallas-Fort Worth and throughout the state," said Daniel Price, natural resource manager with the Fort Worth Nature Center & Refuge.
The Fort Worth Fire Department will participate to ensure everyone's safety. The FWFD wildland team has traveled nationally to respond to wildfires on the West Coast. The highly trained team will use the prescribed burn as a way to educate the attending organizations on the role they play in wildland management and the importance of regulating and managing wildlife refuge locally.
"The science initiatives that drive a prescribed burn will allow our program designers to use collected plant and soil data, along with photos and videos, to create new, exceptional educational programming," said Tracy Friday, vice president for education with FWBG|BRIT. Friday said that the prescribed burn also gives students and teachers the chance to view the event through an environmental STEM -- science, technology, engineering and mathematics -- lens.
Other partners involved in the planned prescribed burn are U.S Fish and Wildlife Service, Texas A&M Forest Service and the Texas Prescribed Fire Council.
Both Price and Friday agreed that the prescribed burn will help inform naturalists, researchers, educators and others.
"The most important thing to remember is that ecological impacts from prescribed burning are not accomplished by just one burn," Price said. "It will take multiple burns and perhaps a decade or more before any positive ecological changes are made."
CBSDFW will livestream the event via Facebook.
MORE FROM CBSDFW
- Dallas Uber Driver Joshua Miller's Dash Cam Helps Lead Police To His Alleged Killer Joshua Scott
- NTSB Makes Safety Recommendations 3 Years After Gas Explosion At Dallas Home Kills 12-Year-Old Girl
- Ex-Boyfriend Of James Faith's Wife Arrested For Shooting And Killing Faith During Walk In Dallas Year
