Fires restrictions notched up a

Fires restrictions notched up a level:
North Idaho going up to Stage II restrictions

July 11, 2015

Drought conditions coupled with very high and trending to extreme fire danger levels continue to persist in northern and central Idaho. These unprecedented conditions have prompted fire restrictions to be raised to Stage II in accordance with the criteria established in the 2015 Idaho Fire Restrictions Plan for all lands in the Coeur d’Alene and Grangeville Dispatch areas (which includes Boundary County, see the list below), as well as Zone 4 of the Payette Dispatch area. Stage II Fire Restrictions will be implemented beginning at 11:59 p.m. on July 13, 2015, and will remain in effect until further notice.

Under Stage II fire restrictions, the following acts are prohibited on the restricted private, state and federally managed or protected lands, roads and trails:
1. Building, maintaining, attending, or using a fire, campfire, or stove fire.
2. Smoking, except within an enclosed vehicle or building, a designated recreation site or while stopped in an area at least three feet in diameter that is barren or cleared of all flammable materials.
3. Operating motorized vehicles off designated roads and trails in accordance with existing travel management plans for non-commercial purposes including ATVs, UTVs, and pickups.
4. The following acts are prohibited from 1:00 p.m. to 1:00 a.m.: (A patrol is required for one hour following cessation of all work as described in a, b and c below.)
     a. Operating a chainsaw or other equipment powered by an internal combustion engine for felling, bucking, skidding, processing, road building and woodcutting or any other activity employing the use of an internal combustion engine or off-road activity associated with industrial operations or fire wood gathering.
     b. Blasting, welding, or other activities that generate flame or flammable material.
     c. Using an explosive.

Exemptions
1. Persons with a written permit that specifically authorizes the otherwise prohibited act.
2. Persons using a fire or stove fire fueled solely by liquid petroleum or LPG fuels. Such devices, including propane campfires, may be used only in an area cleared of flammable material.
3. Persons using stove fires with a chimney of at least five (5) feet in length and employing a spark arrester with a maximum mesh screen opening of ¼ inch on federal lands designated as the Frank Church River of No Return, Gospel Hump or Selway-Bitterroot Wilderness Areas.
4. Persons using metal fire pans* (see definition) within ¼ mile of:
     a. The Salmon River from the Corn Creek launch site to its mouth at the Snake River.
     b. The Middle Fork of the Salmon River.
     c. The Selway River from the Paradise boat launch to Race creek.
     d. The Snake River from Hells Canyon Dam to the City of Lewiston.
              *Pack-out of ashes is required.
5. Persons using a generator with an approved spark arrester on areas that are cleared of all flammable materials within three feet of the generator.
6. Log loading and hauling only from landings and existing roads.
7. Private landowners using charcoal (disposed of properly) or propane barbecues on their own lands.
8. Normal operations on crop lands.
9. Emergency repair of public utilities and railroads as per attached conditions in Stage II Exemptions for Public Utilities and Railroads, Appendix 10.
10. Any federal, state, or local officer or member of an organized rescue or firefighting force, in the performance of an official duty.
11. Persons conducting activities in those designated areas where the activity is specifically authorized by written posted notice.
12. All land within a city boundary.

Important Note: An exemption does not absolve an individual or organization from liability or responsibility for any fire started by the exempted activity.

Stage II Fire Restrictions are being implemented by agencies managing or providing wildland fire protection to private and public lands in the area, including the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), Clearwater Potlatch Timber Protective Association (CPTPA), the Coeur d’Alene Tribe, Idaho Department of Lands (IDL), Idaho Department of Fish and Game (IDFG), the Nez Perce Tribe, the U.S. Forest Service (USFS), and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS). Fire restrictions are intended to decrease the chance of any preventable fires in the designated areas.

Stage II fire restrictions will be in effect in the following areas: (For a detailed map showing all Idaho Fire Restriction Areas, please visit: http://idahofireinfo.blogspot.com/p/fire-restrictions.html)

• Coeur d’Alene Fire Restrictions Area, All Zones: All land located in Bonner, Boundary, Kootenai, Shoshone, Benewah, and Latah Counties.

• Grangeville Fire Restrictions Area, Zone 1 and 2: All of Nez Perce, Clearwater, and Lewis Counties. Those portions of Idaho County that are north of the Salmon River (east of Riggins), west of Highway 95 (south of Riggins) and are not federal lands designated as wilderness, as well as that portion of Adams County that lies within the Hells Canyon National Recreation Area.

• Payette Fire Restrictions Area, Zone 4 ONLY: (see map for detail): All state, private, and BLM managed land (except that located within National Forest System boundaries) south of the main Salmon River to Smokey Boulder road.

Please visit http://idahofireinfo.blogspot.com for current information regarding fire restrictions or contact the local land management office.