Single Incident Information

Carson National Forest fire crews conducted a broadcast prescribed fire to the south of Tres Piedras, NM, in June 2023. Ignitions began June 14 after careful consideration of weather and resource availability in the area. 

The general location of the prescribed fire unit is south of Tres Piedras, west of U.S. Route 285, east of Las Tablas, NM, and north of Forest Road 578. Forest roads 222, 578D, 578G are within or bordering the unit. The forest roads are open to the public. 

The purpose of the 3,318-acre Dorado/Cañada del Agua Prescribed Fire, which is within the Rio Chama Collaborative Forest Landscape Restoration Project boundaries, is to return the ponderosa forest setting to a condition that more closely resembles its natural state, where frequent and low intensity surface fires burn ground fuels and small trees while maintaining an open stand of larger trees. Ponderosa pine forests historically burned every five to 25 years, but after a century of aggressive fire suppression, their structure has changed and are prone to burning with higher temperatures and intensities.