The Santa Barbara County Fire Department plans to conduct a prescribed burn at the Sedgwick Reserve in the Santa Ynez Valley in early November, depending on weather and air quality conditions.

Prescribed fires typically burn less intensely than wildfires. Prescribed burns help prevent the spread of wildfires and can reduce impacts to watersheds that can result in soil loss and sedimentation, according to the Fire Department.

The burn is being conducted to reduce fuels in the area to protect neighboring communities.

Some 281 acres of sage and oak understory will be burned. The burn is expected to take up to six days, which may not be consecutive, depending on conditions, fire officials report.

Santa Barbara County Air Pollution Control District (APCD) staff review the Smoke Management Plan and provide conditions to minimize smoke impacts in Santa Barbara County.

The burn will occur when the meteorological conditions are highly favorable to direct smoke away from population centers, the APCD said.

To minimize impacts on air quality on surrounding communities, the prescribed burn is planned and coordinated by the Santa Barbara County Fire Department; the APCDs of Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo, San Joaquin Valley and Ventura counties; and the California Air Resources Board.

The burn is dependent on weather and air quality conditions that are favorable to smoke dispersion. If the conditions are not as desired, the burn will be rescheduled.