Prescribed burn planned for 224 acres south of Austin

AUSTIN (KXAN) — More than 200 acres will be burned between Driftwood and Buda on Thursday.

Austin Water’s Wildland Conservation Division is conducting a prescribed burn on about 224 acres of the Water Quality Protection Lands to help manage the lands, protect wildlife, and reduce the risk of wildfires in the area, according to a release from Austin Water.

Smoke may be visible northeast of RR 3237, north of FM 150, south of FM 967 and east of FM 1626, and FM 2770 from 10 a.m. to sunset.

Austin Water said prescribed burns mimic the natural fire cycle in a way that can be planned and organized to limit fire intensity and can be beneficial to natural landscapes and human communities by reducing the potential for destructive wildfires.

Prescribed fire also reduces brush and promotes grasslands, which provide the “optimal quality and quantity of water to recharge the aquifer,” according to Austin Water.

Austin Water also said Wildland Conservation staff have seen wildflowers and native grass communities experience greater biodiversity after prescribed fires. Grassland birds like quail and northern harrier hawks also benefit from open habitats found after a fire, for nesting and feeding.

“Conducting prescribed burns is one of the strategies used to manage these lands and protect groundwater in Central Texas,” said Matt Lore, Austin Water Wildland Conservation Division. “Prescribed burns improve the resiliency of our land when they are used as a planned seasonal management tool.”

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