The heat was on recently for an intrepid band of environmental and natural resources management students, even on a brisk and windy day in the dead of winter.
Students in Mr. Hunter Morton’s classes traveled off-campus to join a crew from the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources for a closer look at a prescribed fire on the Bourdeaux Dove Field and Work Center. Located near Hickory Knob State Park, just across the lake from the John de la Howe campus, the 75-acre property is a wildlife management area maintained by SCDNR on land owned by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
According to Mr. Morton, controlled burns such as the one witnessed by our students “allow for the habitat to regenerate, regrow and bring back some of the native grasses and native plants to make the land better for all species,” he said.
Our Aggies were led to the edge of the flames by Mr. Cory Drennan, a wildlife biologist with SCDNR. He further explained the value of prescribed fire as well as the safety protocols his crew must follow – especially on such a breezy afternoon.
“Hazardous fuel reduction is the number one reason,” Mr. Drennan said. “This is the first burn this area has seen since the hurricane passed through on the evening of September 27. We’ve got a lot of downed stuff here…Wildlife management is another big component. Most of what we burn, that’s the primary objective, burning of wildlife management areas.”
Students watched as SCDNR crew members employed drip torches to ignite brush, which quickly spread to large trees felled by Hurricane Helene. Thick billows of smoke reached into the sky, and Mr. Drennan also explained how one of the key aspects of managing a controlled burn is minimizing the smoke impact on neighboring homes and communities.
The off-campus adventure was a chance for students to see up-close some of the best practices they will attempt to replicate when Mr. Morton leads his classes on their own controlled burns on the John de la Howe campus later this year.
“I’ve never experienced anything like this. I’ve never seen a fire that’s in the wild, in the woods,” said student Hagan Giles. “It’s growing as we’re standing here. It can be scary; there’s always risk involved. But this process of burning the undergrowth and clearing out fuel is super important for stopping future fires that could start randomly and get out of control pretty easily.”
For Hagan and other Aggies on the scene, stepping up to the edge of a massive prescribed fire was an awe-inspiring educational opportunity. “It’s not only beautiful to watch, but it’s beautiful to see what it does afterwards, the effects it has on the environment,” Hagan said.
For more information on the SCDNR prescribed fire program, visit the DNR website.