TRAVIS COUNTY, Tx- Travis County Parks plans to conduct a prescribed burn at Southeast Metropolitan Park on Thursday, August 3 or Friday, August 4, 2017. The prescribed burn will take place between 11 a.m. and 6 p.m., and will take two to four hours to complete. Travis County Parks is conducting the prescribed burn in cooperation with local fire departments and natural resource agencies.
The prescribed burn is 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 burn will be conducted with an easterly or southerly wind which will carry the smoke to the west or north across the less developed portion of the park and areas along SH 130 and/or the Colorado River. Some smoke impacts are expected, but they should be relatively light and short in duration.
While the park will remain open during the burn, portions of the park and trails such as the picnic area, the Primitive Trailhead, the Primitive Trail and the multi-use trail may be closed.
Travis County is currently under a burn ban. Burn bans limit certain types of fire use in order to minimize the potential for accidental fires and to reduce the impact fires have on emergency responders. Burn bans do not limit all fire use such as cooking, welding, etc. and many activities are allowed with certain restrictions. Prescribed-burn managers conduct prescribed burns during burn bans because conditions are favorable for meeting established objectives. Land managers, regulators and emergency responders coordinate the implementation of the prescribed burns.
Southeast Metropolitan Park is located at 4511 Hwy 71 East, Del Valle, TX 78617.
Media: The park will remain open but access to the prescribed burn will be limited. Please call the Park Land Manager, Glen Gillman at 512-844-7480 for more information.
