(BILLINGS, Mont.) - The long, hot days of summer are drying out the grasses, shrubs and trees in south central Montana, increasing fire danger and prompting authorities to implement fire restrictions.
All state and federal lands in Yellowstone and Musselshell counties will be under Stage I Fire Restrictions beginning June 30.
(BLM photo)
Yellowstone and Musselshell counties will implement Stage I fire restrictions on June 30. In cooperation with the counties, all Bureau of Land Management (BLM), Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation (DNRC) and Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks (FWP) lands within these counties will also be placed in Stage I restrictions.
Stage I fire restrictions apply to campfires and smoking. Under Stage I restrictions, the following acts are prohibited:
· Building, maintaining, attending, or using a fire or campfire except within a developed recreation site, fire ring or improved site.
· Smoking, except within an enclosed vehicle or building, a developed recreation site, or in an area at least three feet in diameter that is barren or cleared of all flammable materials.
Exemptions to the above Stage I restrictions include:
· Persons with a written permit that specifically authorizes the otherwise prohibited act.
· Persons using a device solely fueled by liquid petroleum or LPG fuels that can be turned on and off. Such devices can only be used in an area that is barren or cleared of all overhead and surrounding flammable materials within three feet of the device.
· Persons conducting activities in those designated areas where the activity is specifically authorized by written posted notice.
· Any Federal, State, or local officer or member of an organized rescue or firefighting force in the performance of an official duty.
· All land within a city boundary is exempted.
· Other exemptions unique to each agency/tribe/jurisdiction.
Fireworks are prohibited on state and federal lands all year. Exploding targets available for sale to recreational shooters are also considered a pyrotechnic product and are prohibited year round.
Any individual who causes a wildland fire intentionally or through negligence will be held accountable for damage and suppression costs.
For additional information on fire restrictions, visit the fire restrictions website at www.firerestrictions.us.
Source: U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management
