South Jersey Could Potentially Face More Forest Fires

Unless, we heed the Pinelands Preservation Alliance's recommendation.

Recall for a minute the fire that broke out in the Pine Barrens of Burlington County last month.

Luckily, that fire wasn't as devastating as some have been in the past. Actually, New Jersey isn't really prone to a lot of forest fire outbreaks compared to other states in the U.S. Last month's fire was hugely eye-opening, nevertheless. NJ.com asked the question: is enough being done to prevent them in our state?

Turns out, controlled burns aren't being initiated as often or over as much land as they should be. Yes, NJ practices the technique of controlled forest burns in an effort to prevent massive fires, but apparently we're not doing enough. NJ.com reports that the Pinelands Preservation Alliance says 20,000 acres should be burned each and every year if we want to be absolutely positive we're doing all that we can to prevent a devastating outbreak.

Reportedly, we can't burn as often as we should because there are certain laws and regulations in place that don't and won't legally allow for that many burns over that much land within the legal controlled burn season.

Sounds like some repeals might have to come first before we reach the recommended level of prevention.

Source: NJ.com