Contractors on the Prescott National Forest planned to begin a thinning project Thursday that’s expected to last three months.
Crews on the Bradshaw Ranger District near Prescott will use heavy equipment to thin about 200 acres in what’s called the Blackjack Mastication Project.
It’s part of the Bradshaw Vegetation Management Plan and is designed to restore watersheds, rangelands and wildlife habitat while reducing the danger of wildfires that could threaten communities in the wildland-urban interface.
No area or road closures are expected during the project but officials ask that the public avoid the area where equipment is operating in the Iron Springs Road and Skyline Drive area.
Meanwhile, officials on the Apache-Sitgreaves National Forests were set to begin multiple prescribed burns this week.
Crews will ignite areas near Forest Lakes and Heber-Overgaard on the Black Mesa Ranger District along with more than 10,000 acres north of the town of Morenci that’s a partnership between the Arizona Game and Fish Department and the mining company Freeport McMoran.
Managers say their aim is to reduce fuels and improve long-term forest health. The burns are expected to continue into mid-April.