Chattahoochee Fall Line Prescribed Fire Cooperative

The Chattahoochee Fall Line Prescribed Fire Cooperative began as a concept in 2015. Several states, federal, private, and non-governmental partners worked together to launch this project. It was established in October 2017 with the hiring of the Prescribed Fire Center Coordinator. The goal of the Co-Op is to increase the frequency, quality, and quantity of prescribed fire on private lands. A secondary goal is to establish a training center that will facilitate classroom and hands-on training events.

We are burning 4% of the forested acres currently in this area. The Co-Op has set a goal of increasing that to 6% or an additional 20,000 acres. With a long-term goal of reaching 20% – 30%.

Plans for the Co-Op

The current and future plan of the Co-Op is to listen to the needs of our local landowners. West Central Georgia is the focal area of the project. The primary benefit is to increase the number of acres burned which will enhance native ecosystems and reduce the risk of catastrophic wildfires. When we talked to local landowners, we discovered that many are unaware of current programs and/or services. This led to the establishment of the West Central Georgia Forest Landowners Association (WCGFLA). Landowners can join the association for free by liking the Facebook page or by requesting to be added to the e-mail list. To be added to the email list please send an email to rlumpkin@gfc.state.ga.us. At WCGFLA meetings and events we surveyed local landowners to find out what barriers have been encountered and prevented the fire from reaching the ground. The most frequent reasons raised were lack of equipment, technical assistance, cost-share, and education/training. The Co-Op has utilized strong partnerships in the area to address these barriers.

West Central Georgia Prescribed Burn Trailers

Our West Central Georgia Prescribed Burn Trailers were developed to help provide specialized equipment to burn safely, efficiently, and at the lowest cost possible. We have two trailers in the Co-Op area now. The first was assembled without the use of state or federal funds and is located in Marion County. The second trailer is located in Talbot County and was assembled thanks to the Georgia Sentinel Landscape Pilot Project. This trailer is very similar to the first, but we made improvements based on feedback provided by landowners that had rented the trailer in the past.

The tools and equipment inside the trailer were purchased after consulting with local landowners. Trailers like this are currently being developed in other parts of Georgia, Florida, and Alabama. South Georgia is slated to have 7 burn trailers available this burn season.

Both trailers are available to rent for $100 per day, first come, first served. The rental fee is used to maintain the tools and equipment in each trailer. If you are interested in renting one of these trailers, please call 478-957-0307.

• Read an overview of the West Central Georgia Prescribed Burn Trailers.
• Watch video about features of the West Central Georgia Prescribed Burn Trailers for Marion and Talbot Counties.

Available Services

The Prescribed Fire Center Coordinator is an extra resource in the West Central Georgia area. The Co-Op offers professional advice on many prescribed fire issues. Technical assistance comes in many forms and can be confusing to some landowners. The Co-Op will be glad to help eliminate any barriers that you may encounter to applying prescribed fire. However, we don’t stop at the prescribed fire because we are sure that as landowners continue to learn about forest management prescribed fire will become a vital tool in the future. The Co-Op often serves as a bridge to other local partners that can assist with specific land stewardship needs.

Cost Share Opportunities

Lack of cost-share funding has been the #1 barrier most landowners ran into while trying to implement a prescribed burn. The Co-Op developed the West Central Georgia Prescribed Fire Initiative to help with this problem. In FY20, FY21, FY22, & FY23 319 private landowners received over $600,000 to burn over 39,000 acres. Feedback from applicants will continue to help improve the initiative going forward.

This year’s initiative has major changes.

Eligible FY24 applicants will be awarded on a first come first served basis. Landowners should apply after the burn is completed and provide your burn permit number on the application. Landowners burning multiple blocks during the application period should submit multiple applications. Applications for burns completed between January 2nd and March 31st will be accepted.

Click to access current funding availability.

• FY24 Applications will be accepted between 1/2/24 -3/31/24
• The rate per acre will vary between $8-$25, the maximum per landowner is $3750.
• The burn must be conducted in one of the following counties: Chattahoochee, Dooly, Harris, Macon, Marion, Muscogee, Schley, Stewart, Sumter, Talbot, Taylor, or Webster.

The FY24 WCG Rx Fire Initiative is funded by NFWF – America the Beautiful Challenge Grant, the Georgia Department of Natural Resources Bobwhite Quail Initiative, and other partners.

• Click this link to view the FY24 flyer on Applicant’s Information Guidelines.
• Click here if you would like to complete an application.

Please click below for West Central Georgia Rx Fire Initiative financial documents:

• Affidavit for Individuals
• W-9 and Supplier Form

Events

Training will always be an important part of the prescribed fire application, and the Co-Op offers several options. We offer local prescribed fire certification classes to ensure our landowners can obtain a state certification if desired. We offer three live-fire training opportunities, Learn & Burns, Live Fire Demonstrations, and Landowner Field Trips (LFT).

Helpful Resources