The staff at Stones River National Battlefield plans to burn about 310 acres of fields and forested areas on Thursday and Friday December 6-7, 2018. These prescribed burns are a part of the park's Fire Management Plan, which was developed with public and professional participation in 2003 and updated in 2018.
The goals of the prescribed burns are to promote the growth of native species. Fire will also recycle nutrients into the soil and help control invasive plants. The prescribed burns will be conducted only if weather conditions fall within a narrow range that provides for the greatest safety and best smoke management. Specially trained wildland firefighters from the Natchez Trace Parkway and Stones River National Battlefield will manage the prescribed burns.