BROOKINGS, S.D. – South Dakota State University Extension, Audubon Great Plains and partner organizations are hosting a first-of-its-kind event for private landowners in South Dakota interested in prescribed fire as a management tool.
The 2024 South Dakota Private Lands Prescribed Fire Forum is from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Dec. 18, 2024, at the Cedar Shore Resort near Oacoma. There is an informal social from 7 to 9 p.m. the night before. All are welcome to attend.
Registration is free and includes a light breakfast, lunch and display table options for attendees and service providers. Private vendors or fire service providers are also welcome and can request a display table for free. To register, visit the SDSU Extension Events page and search “fire”. Walk-ins are welcome.
The day will include presentations and open discussions on the status of using prescribed fire on private lands across South Dakota. Pete Bauman, SDSU Extension Natural Resources and Wildlife Field Specialist, is excited to host this inaugural, statewide event.
“We’re really looking forward to this opportunity to get everyone in the same room to discuss prescribed fire management. Everyone should feel welcome to attend and learn, and we will have multiple opportunities to ask and answer questions about all aspects of fire use, from training to funding to planning,” Bauman said. “We have a very fire-friendly state, and we need to make sure everyone understands the opportunities and resources available to them.”
Presentations begin at 9 a.m. with a review of pertinent South Dakota fire law for private lands and an overview of partner organizations, agencies and available programs and resources, followed by an open audience discussion.
After lunch, South Dakota’s landowner-led fire cooperatives will provide updates. The day will wrap with featured speakers Brian Teeter, Nebraska Pheasants Forever State Prescribed Fire Coordinator, and John Weir, Oklahoma State University Extension Senior Specialist for Fire Ecology and Natural Resource Ecology and Management, who will provide real-life examples of successful private land burns from across the Great Plains.
For more information, contact Pete Bauman, SDSU Extension Natural Resources and Wildlife Field Specialist.
