Travis County Parks plans to conduct multiple prescribed burns at Southeast Metropolitan Park during the week of February 6, 2017. The location and date of the burns will be determined by the weather but they are expected to occur between Tuesday and Thursday and will take place between 11:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. The prescribed burns will each take approximately three to four hours to complete. Travis County Parks is conducting the prescribed burns in cooperation with personnel from Travis County Fire Rescue, Lake Travis Fire Rescue, Pflugerville Fire Department, the Lower Colorado River Authority and the Texas Forest Service.
The prescribed burns are being implemented to improve the health of the grassland and woodlands communities within the park by removing invading shrubs, reducing the amount of dead woody material on the ground, and enhancing the health and diversity of the native plant community.
The prescribed burns will be conducted with different wind directions. South winds will be required for some of the prescribed burns and will carry the smoke to the north across the park. Other units will require a north wind which will carry smoke to the south and across Highway 71. The prescribed burns will be conducted to minimize impacts to the road and communities to the south. Some smoke impacts are expected, but they should be relatively light and/or of a short duration.
The park will remain open during the prescribed burns however some portions of the park and trails will be closed, specifically the Primitive Trailhead and Multi-use Trail. Those areas of the park that remain open may be impacted by smoke from the prescribed burns.
Southeast Metropolitan Park is located at 4511 Hwy 71 East, Del Valle, TX 78617.
Media note: The park will remain open. There may be a PIO or staff available for interviews. Please call the Park Land Manager, Glen Gillman, 512-844-7480 for more information.
