Common use of Prescribed Fire Clause in Contracts

Prescribed Fire. In the fall (i.e., mid-August through November), prescribed xxxxx may be performed to discourage woody plant growth, remove accumulated leaf litter and duff, and encourage the spread of native prairie grasses and forbs. An annual burn unit (ABU) will be determined based on the individual site conditions and population sizes. Prescribed fire may be used to manage prairie habitats on the enrolled property each year, but the area that may be burned in any one year is limited to no more than one- third of any occupied site. The ABU for sites supporting 100 or more adult Fender’s blue butterflies may be a maximum of one-third of the occupied habitat. The ABU for sites with less than 100 adult Fender’s blue butterflies may be up to a maximum of one-fourth of the occupied habitat. The center of the ABU will be within 100 meters of unburned occupied habitat, which can serve as a recolonization source. Once burned, a unit will not be re-burned for at least three years so that butterfly populations may rebuild. The use of fire for habitat maintenance inherently increases the risk of accidentally impacting more habitat than originally intended. The responsible Parties will plan to burn approximately five percent less than the annual maximum so that the maximum allowable ABU will not be exceeded. Large woody plants will be removed before burning to reduce fuel loads if feasible. Ignition of burn areas will be by hand using propane, fuses, or drip torches. Pre-burn hose lays, wet-lining, or fire retardant foam will be used to control and suppress fires. Prescribed xxxxx will be conducted in a manner consistent with state and local smoke management regulations. Vehicles will not be operated in areas where listed species occur. Additionally, where patch size allows, butterfly refugia within burn units will be protected with a fire break and/or watered down before burning. During a burn year, management activities will also be limited for adjacent units of the site. For example, if one-third of the site is burned, the remaining unburned portion of the site will not be mowed so that the maximum area affected by management activities is no more than one-third of the site. When using prescribed fire as a management technique, additional consideration of subsequent annual treatments for the ABU will be necessary. That is, in the year following a burn, management of that unit will be limited to manual techniques and herbicide applications. Occupied habitat that is scheduled to be burned may be used as a source for collecting Fender’s blue butterfly eggs and larvae if an appropriate holding/rearing facility is available. Any eggs and larvae that are collected will be used to further research on Fender’s blue butterfly. Research efforts may provide information that will improve the effectiveness of captive rearing, reintroduction, or augmentation techniques for future use at historical or declining sites that currently do not support a viable population, or to increase the stability of existing populations. While it is acknowledged that this activity may occur on lands enrolled under this Agreement, a separate ESA 10(a)(1)(A) permit will be required for any associated collection, rearing and reintroduction of Fender’s blue butterflies.

Prescribed Fire. In the fall (i.e., mid-August through November), prescribed xxxxx may be performed to discourage woody plant growth, remove accumulated leaf litter and duff, and encourage the spread of native prairie grasses and forbs. An annual burn unit (ABU) will be determined based on the individual site conditions and population sizes. Prescribed fire may be used to manage prairie habitats on the enrolled property each year, but the area that may be burned in any one year is limited on sites occupied by Fender’s blue butterfly and Xxxxxx’x xxxxxxx-xxxxxx, as described below. A vegetative buffer (generally 15-m [50-feet] wide) and erosion control measures will be maintained along any adjacent watercourse as needed to no more than one- third avoid the risk of any occupied sitepotential impacts to listed fish. The ABU for sites supporting 100 or more adult Fender’s blue butterflies may be a maximum of one-third of the occupied habitat. The ABU for sites with less fewer than 100 adult Fender’s blue butterflies may be up to a maximum of one-fourth of the occupied habitat. No more than half of any area occupied by Xxxxxx’x xxxxxxx- xxxxxx may be burned, because this species may not have completely senesced in the fall when prescribed xxxxx are implemented. The center of the ABU will be within 100 meters m (328 feet) of unburned occupied habitat, which can serve as a recolonization source. Once burned, a unit will not be re-burned for at least three 3 years so that butterfly or plant populations may rebuild. The use of fire for habitat maintenance inherently increases the risk of accidentally impacting more habitat than originally intended. The responsible Parties will plan to burn approximately five 5 percent less than the annual maximum so that the maximum allowable ABU will not be exceeded. Large woody plants will be removed before burning to reduce fuel loads if feasible. Ignition of burn areas will be by hand using propane, fuses, or drip torches. Pre-burn hose lays, wet-lining, or fire retardant foam will be used to control and suppress fires. However, fire retardant chemicals will be used sparingly near listed plant and butterfly populations, and will typically not be used where they could enter a watercourse (generally no closer to water than 40 m [131 feet]). Prescribed xxxxx will be conducted in a manner consistent with state and local smoke management regulations. Vehicles will not be operated in areas where listed species occur. Additionally, where patch size allows, butterfly refugia within burn units will be protected with a fire break and/or watered down before burning. During a burn yearyear on sites occupied by Fender’s blue butterfly, management activities will also be limited for adjacent units of the site. For example, if one-third of the site is burned, the remaining unburned portion of the site will not be mowed so that the maximum area affected by all management activities is no more than one-one- third of the site. When using prescribed fire as a management technique, additional consideration of subsequent annual treatments for the ABU will be necessary. That is, in the year following a burn, management of that unit will be limited to manual techniques and herbicide applications. Occupied habitat that is scheduled to be burned may be used as a source for collecting Fender’s blue butterfly eggs and larvae if an appropriate holding/rearing facility is available. Any eggs and larvae that are collected will be used to further research on Fender’s blue butterfly. Research efforts may provide information that will improve the effectiveness of captive rearing, reintroduction, or augmentation techniques for future use at historical or declining sites that currently do not support a viable population, or to increase the stability of existing populations. While it is acknowledged that this activity may occur on lands enrolled under this Agreement, a separate ESA 10(a)(1)(A) permit will be required for any associated collection, rearing rearing, and reintroduction of Fender’s blue butterflies.

Prescribed Fire. In the fall (i.e., mid-August through November), prescribed xxxxx may be performed to discourage woody plant growth, remove accumulated leaf litter and duff, and encourage the spread of native prairie grasses and forbs. An annual burn unit (ABU) will be determined based on the individual site conditions and population sizes. Prescribed fire may be used to manage prairie grassland habitats on the enrolled property each year, but the area that may be burned in any one year is limited to no more than one- third of any on sites occupied siteby Xxxxxx’x checkerspot as described below. The ABU for sites supporting 100 300 or more adult Fender’s blue butterflies Xxxxxx’x checkerspot may be a maximum of one-third of the occupied habitat. The ABU for sites with less than 100 300 adult Fender’s blue butterflies Xxxxxx’x checkerspot may be up to a maximum of one-fourth fifth of the occupied habitat. The center of the ABU will be within 100 meters of unburned occupied habitat, which can serve as a recolonization source. Once burned, a unit will not be re-burned for at least three years so that butterfly or plant populations may rebuild. The use of fire for habitat maintenance inherently increases the risk of accidentally impacting more habitat than originally intended. The responsible Parties will plan to burn approximately five percent less than the annual maximum so that the maximum allowable ABU will not be exceeded. Large woody plants will be removed before burning to reduce fuel loads if feasible. Ignition of burn areas will be by hand using propane, fuses, or drip torches. Pre-burn hose lays, wet-lining, or fire retardant foam will be used to control and suppress fires. However, fire retardant chemicals will be used sparingly near occupied habitats, and will typically not be used where they could enter a watercourse (generally no closer to water than 40 meters [120 feet]). Prescribed xxxxx will be conducted in a manner consistent with state and local smoke management regulations. Vehicles will not be operated in areas where listed species Xxxxxx’x checkerspot occur. Additionally, where patch size allows, butterfly refugia within burn units will be protected with a fire break and/or watered down before burning. During a burn yearyear on sites occupied by Xxxxxx’x checkerspot, management activities will also be limited for adjacent units of the site. For example, if one-third of the site is burned, the remaining unburned portion of the site will not be mowed so that the maximum area affected by management activities is no more than one-third of the site, unless the Service determines that those additional management activities have a very low likelihood of directly impacting Xxxxxx’x checkerspot. When using prescribed fire as a management technique, additional consideration of subsequent annual treatments for the ABU will be necessary. That is, in the year following a burn, management of that unit will be limited to manual techniques and herbicide applications. Occupied habitat that is scheduled to be burned may be used as a source for collecting Fender’s blue butterfly Xxxxxx’x checkerspot eggs and larvae if an appropriate holding/rearing facility or translocation site is available. Any Xxxxxx’x checkerspot eggs and larvae that are collected will be used to further research on Fender’s blue butterflyXxxxxx’x checkerspot. Research efforts may provide information that will improve the effectiveness of captive rearing, reintroduction, or augmentation techniques for future use at historical or declining sites that currently do not support a viable population, or to increase the stability of existing populations. While it is acknowledged that this activity may occur on covered lands enrolled under this Agreement, a separate ESA section 10(a)(1)(A) permit will be required for any associated collection, rearing and reintroduction of Fender’s blue butterfliesXxxxxx’x checkerspot.

Prescribed Fire. In the fall (i.e., mid-August through November), prescribed xxxxx may be performed to discourage woody plant growth, remove accumulated leaf litter and duff, and encourage the spread of native prairie grasses and forbs. An annual burn unit (ABU) will be determined based on the individual site conditions and population sizes. Prescribed fire may be used to manage prairie habitats on the enrolled property each year, but the area that may be burned in any one year is limited on sites occupied by Fender’s blue butterfly and Xxxxxx’x xxxxxxx-xxxxxx, as described below. A vegetative buffer (generally 15-m [50-feet] wide) and erosion control measures will be maintained along any adjacent watercourse as needed to no more than one- third avoid the risk of any occupied sitepotential impacts to listed fish. The ABU for sites supporting 100 or more adult Fender’s blue butterflies may be a maximum of one-third of the occupied habitat. The ABU for sites with less than 100 adult Fender’s blue butterflies may be up to a maximum of one-fourth of the occupied habitat. No more than half of any area occupied by Xxxxxx’x checker-mallow may be burned, because this species may not have completely senesced in the fall when prescribed xxxxx are implemented. The center of the ABU will be within 100 meters m (328 feet) of unburned occupied habitat, which can serve as a recolonization source. Once burned, a unit will not be re-burned for at least three years so that butterfly or plant populations may rebuild. The use of fire for habitat maintenance inherently increases the risk of accidentally impacting more habitat than originally intended. The responsible Parties will plan to burn approximately five percent less than the annual maximum so that the maximum allowable ABU will not be exceeded. Large woody plants will be removed before burning to reduce fuel loads if feasible. Ignition of burn areas will be by hand using propane, fuses, or drip torches. Pre-burn hose lays, wet-lining, or fire retardant foam will be used to control and suppress fires. However, fire retardant chemicals will be used sparingly near listed plant and butterfly populations, and will typically not be used where they could enter a watercourse (generally no closer to water than 40 m [131 feet]). Prescribed xxxxx will be conducted in a manner consistent with state and local smoke management regulations. Vehicles will not be operated in areas where listed species occur. Additionally, where patch size allows, butterfly refugia within burn units will be protected with a fire break and/or watered down before burning. During a burn yearyear on sites occupied by Fender’s blue butterfly, management activities will also be limited for adjacent units of the site. For example, if one-third of the site is burned, the remaining unburned portion of the site will not be mowed so that the maximum area affected by management activities is no more than one-third of the site. When using prescribed fire as a management technique, additional consideration of subsequent annual treatments for the ABU will be necessary. That is, in the year following a burn, management of that unit will be limited to manual techniques and herbicide applications. Occupied habitat that is scheduled to be burned may be used as a source for collecting Fender’s blue butterfly eggs and larvae if an appropriate holding/rearing facility is available. Any eggs and larvae that are collected will be used to further research on Fender’s blue butterfly. Research efforts may provide information that will improve the effectiveness of captive rearing, reintroduction, or augmentation techniques for future use at historical or declining sites that currently do not support a viable population, or to increase the stability of existing populations. While it is acknowledged that this activity may occur on lands enrolled under this Agreement, a separate ESA 10(a)(1)(A) permit will be required for any associated collection, rearing and reintroduction of Fender’s blue butterflies.