Controlled Burns Starting At Mt. Diablo State Park In May

DANVILLE, CA — Starting Monday, May 13, California State Parks will perform a series of prescribed burns on 10 plots of land, totaling approximately 240 acres within the Mitchell Canyon area of Mt. Diablo State Park, California State Parks announced.

The burns are intended to manage invasive species, reduce fuel loading in the wildland-urban interface, promote biodiversity by providing conditions to fire-adapted plants, promote nutrient cycling, enhance wildlife habitat, and restore the natural fire regime, according to the department.

The 240 acres will not all be burned at once. Plots will either be burned in the spring or fall, and after that plots will be on rotation to be burned at regular fire intervals. Burns will be scheduled on days when smoke is blowing away from neighborhoods, and Cal Parks will monitor weather conditions to make sure the burn achieved the desired smoke result.

Individual burns will be posted here and on the Mt. Diablo State Park Facebook page. To be added to burn notifications, contact christina.lew@parks.ca.gov.

The Mitchell Canyon and Regency entrances in the northern area of the park will temporarily close on burn days. The Mitchell Canyon parking lots and visitor centers will also close in addition to the following trails:

• Mitchell Canyon Fire Road
• Bruce Lee Road
• Water Tower Road
• Murchio Road
• Oak Road
• Coulter Pine Trail
• Mitchell Rock Trail
• Back Creek Road
• Regency Trail
• Donner Canyon Road
• Clayton Oaks Trail

See here for more information.