(SitNews) Ketchikan, Alaska - The Ketchikan–Misty Fiords Ranger District is restricting building, maintaining, or attending a fire using wood pallets, construction materials with nails or hardware attached, or treated wood of any kind at the Ward Lake Recreation Area starting immediately. The announcement was made Friday.

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Nails, staples, and other hardware left behind after the burning of pallets/construction material is a safety risk, especially to children and pets, in the high use recreation area. The necessity of disposing of these items adds a burden to the Forest Service’s already minimal recreation budgets. Implementing this order will allow district personnel more time to focus on recreation area enhancements, public interaction, and reduction of deferred maintenance

“When pallets are burned, cleaning of metal fire rings changes from a five-minute chore where ash can be disposed of naturally on site, to a cleanup effort taking an hour that requires paying to dispose of nails at a local transfer facility,” said Ketchikan–Misty Fiords Ranger District Ranger Jeff DeFreest. “Flames from stacked pallets have scorched branches and nearby tree trunks. The intense heat caused by pallet fires has warped many fire rings and attached grills. Fireplaces in the day use area shelters have also had considerable damage from the excess heat.”

The district began offering firewood (by donation) in 2012 at the Signal Creek Campground. The firewood location is less than a half mile from the Ward Lake day use area. Local grocery stores also sell firewood bundles in Ketchikan.

Ward Lake Recreation Area is located about six miles north of Ketchikan near Ward Cove. The area receives high use year-round for fishing, camping, picnicking, hiking, and wildlife viewing. The area includes all overnight (Signal Creek Campground, Last Chance Campground, and 3 C’s Group Use Site) and day use locations (Ward Lake and Grassy Point shelters, roadside and lakeside picnic sites, roads, and trails within the recreation area.

According to information provided by Ketchikan–Misty Fiords Ranger District Ranger Jeff DeFreest, this order for the Ward Lake Recreation Area is in accordance with 36 CFR 261.52(a). Violations of these prohibitions are punishable by a fine of not more than $5,000 for an individual or $10,000 for an organization, or imprisonment for not more than six months, or both. [16 U.S.C. 551 and 18 U.S.C. 3559 and 3571]

Source of News: 

U.S. Forest Service
Ketchikan–Misty Fiords Ranger District
www.fs.fed.gov

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