PRESCRIBED BURN PLANS

The Prescribed Burn Plan is required for all burns led by Conservancy Representatives and Conservancy contractors. It is a field document that describes the safety and operational details for conducting a particular burn(s) at a specific location. The Prescribed Burn Plan is much more specific than site management plans and details the prescription parameters and professional standards to be used in conducting the burn. A burn may be a Broadcast Burn covering many acres of area, or a Non-broadcast Burn of debris piles, old structures or agricultural ditches where the spread of fire is constrained.

Any burn conducted on Conservancy property or led by a Conservancy Representative or contractor, even if in cooperation with another agency or entity, must have an approved Consequence Analysis and Prescribed Burn Activity Approval. Conservancy employees should see the Conservancy's Intranet Fire Manual (Internal link, Planning- Sections B and C) for further guidance.

Burn Plan Review and Approval

A burn plan is often prepared by the Burn Boss who will be conducting the burn, but may be prepared by others, such as a Fire Planner or contractor. In-depth familiarity with the area to be burned and the information and standards presented in this manual are essential to successfully completing a burn plan.

All burn plans must be signed and dated by the preparer and by the designated Prescribed Fire Manager before the burn is conducted. The signature of the Prescribed Fire Manager conveys approval of the burn plan. Every Burn Boss must complete and sign a Go/No-Go Checklist prior to igniting any burn.

All Prescribed Burn Plans reviewed and approved after March 15, 2024, in the U.S., broadcast and non-broadcast, must be approved by a Fire Manager with Prescribed Fire Manager (RXMG) qualifications.

When is a Technical Review of a Prescribed Burn Plan required?

A Technical Review is required when the Prescribed Fire Manager who reviews and approves the plan is also an author of the plan. It is also required when the prescribed burn plan must comply with US federal standards for Prescribed Fire Planning and Implementation (PMS 484). This non-standard situation often arises from cooperative burning across ownership involving federal lands. Additionally, a Fire Manager may request a technical review if it benefits their review of the plan. For example, checking the weather prescription extremes with fire behavior calculations, or comparing fire behavior estimates and burn timing with desired fire effects and contingency safety margins.

If the Prescribed Fire Manager is the author of the plan, it must receive a Technical Review by another Burn Boss familiar with the fuel type of the planned burn area. The technical reviewer does not have to be a Conservancy Representative; a burn boss from other agencies is acceptable as long as they are qualified to lead similar burns. The technical reviewer must complete and sign the TNC Technical Reviewer Checklist, that must be attached to the approved burn plan. The Prescribed Fire Manager remains an approver for the plan, but changes identified in the technical review must be addressed and incorporated into the plan they have authored.

How Long is a Prescribed Burn Plan in Effect?

An approved burn plan is in effect for five years, or until conditions stated within the plan have changed. The burn boss must review the Prescribed Burn Plan before each burn to verify that conditions have not changed. If there is any question about the need for an update to the burn plan, the burn boss will check with the Prescribed Fire Manager prior to ignition. The Prescribed Fire Manager may approve a burn plan for less than five years, indicating the expiration date  on the Signature Page of the plan.

Can an approved Prescribed Burn Plan be Modified?

A Prescribed Burn Plan may be amended prior to burn implementation. Any changes must be approved by the designated Prescribed Fire Manager at the time the modification is made. The approval must be documented with a new, dated signature on the cover page of the plan. If additional approval is required by the Director of Fire Management or their designee, their signature must also be obtained. Approved amendments do not alter the plan’s original expiration date unless explicitly stated.

Minor modifications to a Prescribed Burn Plan that the Burn Boss may implement without new approval signatures include:

• Updating to the most current Go/No-Go Checklist, Prescribed Burn Activity Approval Form, or TNC Documentation (attachments)
• Revising or enhancing Maps, provided there are no changes to the size or configuration of designated burn areas
• Adding or revising the Ignition Authorization Form
• Updating Communications or Safety and Medical burn plan elements (e.g., contact names, phone numbers, emergency response sources)

Can a Prescribed Burn Plan be Modified in the Field?

All burns must be conducted in accordance with the parameters specified in the approved Prescribed Burn Plan. If the Burn Boss makes minor modifications (as defined above), these changes must be documented in writing—either directly on a physical copy of the plan or within the completed Go/No-Go Checklist. Following the burn, such changes must be communicated to the Prescribed Fire Manager, and the plan updated accordingly to reflect these adjustments for future use of the plan.

Any other modifications beyond those classified as minor require prior approval from the Prescribed Fire Manager. If additional burn plan approvals were required, signatures from the other approvers must also be obtained. All modifications must conform to Prescribed Burn Requirements; exceptions require approval from the Director of Fire Management.

Where are Prescribed Burn Unit Plans Filed?

Copies of burn plans should be archived at the state or local level. A copy is also carried into the field during the implementation of the burn.

Format of the Prescribed Burn Plan (Broadcast Burns)

The Conservancy has a Standard Prescribed Burn Plan template for broadcast burns. The format may be customized, but it must contain the following planning elements:

• Signature Page
• Description of burn area (geographic location, vegetation and fuels, narrative description of area to be burned)
• Goals and objectives
• Prescription (fuels, weather, timing or seasonality, narrative description of desired fire behavior)
• Smoke Management
• Personnel and Equipment (number and types, crew organization and PPE)
• Pre-burn preparations (site prep, permits, notifications, weather forecasts)
• Communications (on-site, sources of emergency assistance, public relations)
• Safety and Medical
• Ignition
• Holding (procedures, mop-up standards, backup source of water supply)
• Contingency (location and response time of emergency resources, secondary control lines, triggers for declaring escapes and associated crew assignments)
• Monitoring (on-site weather, fire behavior and smoke)
• Post-burn activities (ensure monitoring until burn area is out)
• Attachment: Maps
• Attachment: Go/No Go Checklist (including: Go/No-Go, briefing, test fire and post-burn checks)
• Attachment: Complexity Analysis *
• Attachment: Prescribed Burn Activity Approval Form
• Attachment: TNC Documentation (Review of Laws, Conflict of Interest and Private Benefits screenings, landowners permissions and waivers)
• Attachment: Technical Reviewer Checklist (when required)
• Attachment: TNC Ignition Authorization Form **(when required)

Government agency or other cooperators working with the Conservancy may have versions of Prescribed Burn Plans covering essentially the same information. Different formats and templates can satisfy this planning requirement for Conservancy plans provided the plan includes all the elements listed above.

The use of aviation resources, helicopters or other aircraft, on Conservancy burns must be included in the Prescribed Burn Plan. Note of resources will be made in the crew organizational chart or text, and in day-of-burn operations plan elements such as communications, ignition or monitoring. Potential use of aircraft should be taken into account in burn plan complexity and consequence analysis. Go/No Go checklists must be appended to include briefings for both ground and air safety (e.g. Interagency Aviation User Pocket Guide, NFES 1373).

Format of the Non-broadcast Burn Plan

Non-broadcast burning includes activities such as burning brush piles, old structures and spot burning weeds or invasive species. The format of a non-broadcast burn plan may be customized, but it must contain the following planning elements:

• Signatures
• Description of burn (geographic location, fuels to be burned)
• Prescription (weather, timing or seasonality)
• Smoke Management
• Personnel and Equipment (number and types, and PPE)
• Pre-burn preparations (site prep, permits, notifications, weather forecasts)
• Communications (sources of emergency assistance)
• Safety and Medical
• Ignition
• Holding (procedures and mop-up standards)
• Contingency
• Post-burn activities (ensure monitoring until burn area is out)
• Attachment: maps (when required)
• Attachment: Non-broadcast Burn Go/No-Go Checklist
  (The required TNC Ignition Authorization and Fire Manager notification is documented in the completed checklist.)
• Attachment: Prescribed Burn Activity Approval Form
• Attachment: TNC Documentation *
  (Review of Laws, Conflict of Interest and Private Benefits screenings, landowners permissions and waivers)
• Attachment: Technical Reviewer Checklist * (when required)

* TNC Documentation, Technical Reviewer Checklist and Prescribed Burn Activity Approval Form attachments are required parts of the plan approval process. Field copies of the plan do not need to contain these attachments.

It may be acceptable to write one Non-broadcast Burn Plan that covers multiple burn locations within a limited geographic area, such as multiple pile locations on a large managed site or several small preserves located within a few miles of each other. The burn plan in any situation involving multiple locations must include a map attachment.

An example of a non-broadcast burn plan- brushpile_burn_plan_2021ILFO.

What Are Minimum Qualifications Levels for Burn Leadership?

All Burns must be supervised by a person qualified at or above the minimum qualifications level listed below. The Prescribed Fire Manager may require a higher qualifications level than indicated below for a specific burn. All burn plans must indicate the minimum required level of burn leader qualifications. The minimum qualifications level for a burn is determined by considering both Complexity and Consequence ratings.

    Broadcast Burns (minimum burn boss qualifications)

High Complexity burns must be led by an RXB1 Burn Boss, regardless of Consequence Ranking.

Moderate Complexity burns must be led by an RXB1 or RXB2 burn boss, regardless of Consequence Ranking.

Low Complexity burns with a Consequence Ranking of Medium (Yellow) or High (Red) must be led by an RXB1 or RXB2 Burn Boss. An RXB3 may lead Low Complexity burns with a Consequence Ranking of Low (Green).

    Non-broadcast Burns (minimum burn boss qualifications)

For Non-broadcast Burns, the minimum qualifications level for a burn is determined by considering Consequence Analysis Ranking of the burn location.

Burns Ranked Low (Green) may be led by a person qualified as RXCM or higher.

Burns Ranked Medium (Yellow) must be led by a person qualified as a FFT1 or higher.

Burns Ranked High (Red) must be led by a person qualified as a Single Resource Boss (e.g., ENGB, FIRB, CRWB) or higher.

How Are Burn Objectives Set and Met?

The process of meeting burn objectives involves identifying and applying the appropriate fire behavior to produce the desired effect while considering the feasibility of managing such a fire.

The preparer should state burn objectives in a way that they can be objectively assessed. Burn objectives apply to a particular burn treatment. The burn objectives should be specific enough for the planner to determine what type of fire behavior is required to meet those objectives. Examples are: remove 70% or more of the surface litter; reduce shrubs from 80% canopy cover to a range of 20-40%; remove duff to expose mineral soil over 15-30% of the ground surface to provide suitable seed bed for certain species.

Once the objectives are clearly stated, the next step is an initial approximation of prescribed fire behavior. The challenge is to go from an objective such as "remove 70% or more of the surface litter" to the fire characteristics required to accomplish that objective. A start at this approximation might be, "A fire that will cover 70% or more of the surface area and consume virtually all surface litter." Predictive tools such as BehavePlus can help answer questions such as: how dry must fuels be to burn readily, and what flame lengths and rate of spread might be associated with a fire that would consume them given certain fuel moisture conditions?

Prediction tools, however, are not a substitute for experience. In general, the best way to develop an approximation of what fire characteristics are needed to accomplish burn objectives is to talk to people experienced with fire effects and behavior in the community type to be burned. Published literature may also be helpful.

Next, consider the feasibility of producing the approximated fire behavior and managing a fire of this nature. Begin with an assessment of fuels on the site, and likely weather conditions during the season targeted for burning. Then estimate fire behavior under projected weather and fuel conditions using fire behavior prediction models and guides or other methods.

The process is complete when the Prescribed Burn Unit Plan is refined to a point where your objectives can be met given the probable fuel and weather conditions, and the fire can be safely conducted given various constraints.

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Last updated December 30, 2025.