By MARGARET L. WILLIS

A controlled burn was conducted Monday on Howes Prairie by Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore personnel. The burn area is adjacent to Dune Acres, which recently banned prescribed burns in the residential areas of town.

Neal Mulconry, IDNL Biological Science Technician and burn boss for the day, appeared before the Dune Acres Town Council Tuesday, along with fire management officer Louis Hartjes, to report on the burn.

The burn covered 148 acres and took two and a half hours, Mulconry said.

Weather, humidity and South East winds combined to provide a “perfect,” day, he said. “We had no problems, it went well.” And, the burn achieved a 90 percent consumption of dead fuel; which, if allowed to build up is a fire hazard.

Hartjes said the IDNL has been burning Howes Prairie for 20 years now, the first time being in 1986.

The burn goals are fire fuel reduction, as well as habitat revitalization for endangered plants and animals. “It’s resource and inhabitant protection,” he said, noting the Karner Blue Butterfly is one beneficiary.

The burn went “as planned,” he noted, “even better.”

The burns are mandated by the National Fire Plan and the President’s Healthy Forest Plan, Hartjes said.

“We’re mandated to burn to protect communities,” he said, noting the out of control burns in the west which prompted the mandate.

Thirty firefighters, three fire engines and three ATVs carrying water tanks were on hand to monitor and control the burn.

One boundary of the burn area was the Howes Prairie trail, Hartjes said. “We look for a natural line.” Other boundaries were established by cutting back grasses, using hoes and shovels to get down to the soil and using leaf blowers to clear away debris.

Every step of the process is planned, Hartjes said, with the man power and firefighting equipment on hand taking into account the “worst case scenario.”

Town council member John Wilhelm said he appreciated the depth of the planning and showed his half-inch thick copy of the plan.

“We had no complaints yesterday,” he added.

Mary Ann Crayton, a proponent of the use of controlled burns within the town to reduce fire fuel loads, said she was disappointed that residents had not taken the opportunity to observe a controlled burn.

The continued presence of fuel load in town concerns her, she said.

Wilhelm said he still supports a ban on burns in residential areas.

Town Cleanup May 6

Plans for the Town Clean-up, set for May 6, are underway, said Parks Commissioner Kelly Klein.

Clean-up will include removing non-native species of plants, mulching and painting around town. Plans will be finalized when the Environmental Committee next meets, Thursday, March 23 at 1 p.m. in the Town Hall.

Cheryl Evans, Environmental Commissioner, said the committee plans to meet every fourth Thursday, at 1 p.m.

Evans also reported progress on the efforts to eradicate bittersweet from town property. The next area of the project will be the blowout by the Town Club house and an area near the entrance to Pine Lane.

Evans said she got a positive response to her letter to the South Shore Railroad requesting its employees be reminded not to litter along the railroad. Anyone seeing littering should note the engine number, time and date and report the situation to the company, she said.

Roads Commissioner Irving Call informed the council that some changes have had to be made in the rod paving priority list.

Paving on Ridge Rd. has been dropped for this year, replaced by paving on Oak Drive, Call said. Also the rise on East Rd., up to Circle Drive will be paved and drainage issues at the turnaround on Shore Drive will be addressed.

Mark Hull, Fire Commissioner, related statistics from the Porter Fire Department, which the town contracts with for fire protection.

Porter Fire Department responded to 12 calls in the town of Dune Acres last year, Hull reported. Loss due to fire was zero and there were no injuries. The department responded to three fire alarms, two carbon monoxide alarms, five medical aid calls, searched for a person and was on standby once. Average response time was eight minutes.

Council members thanked Mary Ann Crayton and Lakeshore Realty for the updated town directory, pre-publication copies of which Crayton passed out to council members. Crayton has compiled the information and saved it on computer disk to simplify updating. Lakeshore Realty is sponsoring the cost of printing.

Posted 3/22/2006