The Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management (DEM) has scheduled planned burnings on Prudence Island and in Coventry and Exeter to reduce the buildup of combustible materials in forests and grasslands, making destructive wildfires less likely.
Depending on weather and wind conditions, the "low severity prescribed fires" will occur either in the last two weeks of March or in the first week of April, excluding weekends, state environmental officials said Thursday.
DEM officials said they would notify the public several days before the fires so residents know about the burn windows. A burn window refers to when the environmental variables, such as fuel moisture and weather conditions, are balanced so that the fire will accomplish its goals.