Prescribed burn planned on Lake Okeechobee

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC), South Florida Water Management District and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers plan to conduct a prescribed burn on the northwest end of Lake Okeechobee this week, near Indian Prairie, weather permitting. 

To help protect public health and safety, the agencies plan to conduct the prescribed burn under wind and weather conditions that minimize smoke impacts to nearby towns and roads. Access to navigational trails through the marsh may be limited temporarily during the burn for safety reasons. If the prescribed burn needs to be rescheduled due to weather conditions, the burn will be conducted in the near future.

Application of prescribed burning is part of an integrated management approach on Lake Okeechobee, Florida’s largest lake. Lake Okeechobee is managed in partnership with the FWC, SFWMD, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and Audubon of Florida.

Prescribed burning is a safe way to apply natural processes, ensure ecosystem health and reduce the threat of wildfire. Ecologically responsible prescribed burns help improve habitat for fish, waterfowl, wading birds, the Everglade snail kite and other wildlife populations.

For more information, contact the FWC’s Okeechobee Field Office at 863-462-5190 or visit the Lake Okeechobee Aquatic Plant Management Interagency Task Force website: FloridaInvasives.org/Okeechobee/index.cfm.

Learn about prescribed fire by going to MyFWC.com, clicking on “Wildlife & Habitats” and then “Prescribed Fire.” On that page, you can find information about how prescribed burns benefit wildlife and people.