Prescribed burning is the planned application of fire under specified weather and fuel conditions to achieve specific and clear management objectives, such as restoring wildlife habitat. Previously, Indiana was one of only a few states that did not have a certification program or liability clearly defined through legislation.
Fire has been part of Indiana’s landscape for thousands of years. Native Americans purposefully and strategically used fire to shape Indiana’s landscape for a variety of reasons including wildlife habitat management, vegetation regeneration, and management of oak and hickory species, all to create abundant and predictable resources.1 Fire continued to influence Indiana’s landscape following European settlement until exclusion of fire within the past century. This exclusion of fire can still be reversed with prescribed burning before it is too late.
The Indiana Prescribed Fire Council led this effort with partners over the past three years, including The Nature Conservancy in Indiana, who shepherded the bill through the legislative process. The Conservation Law Clinic of the Conservation Law Center at Indiana University’s Mauer School of Law drafted the initial version of this legislation, which Rep. Beau Baird, introduced and championed. The Southern Indiana Sentinel Landscape helped lead the effort with the partners to support the many overlaps in priorities, including restoration of oak-dominated ecosystems and supporting thriving rural economies. Co-authors included Representatives Michael Karickhoff, Maureen Bauer, and Mike Aylesworth. Senator Susan Glick sponsored the bill in the Senate.
“This bill marks an important step forward for conservation and private land stewardship in Indiana. With clearer training standards and liability protections, prescribed fire can continue to be applied safely, effectively, and more widely across the landscape,” said Jarred Brooke, chair of the Indiana Prescribed Fire Council.
“The Midwest is full of fire-dependent landscapes, and many of them depend upon fairly frequent fires, so putting fire back on the ground helps to restore these natural areas,” said Stuart Orr, Fire Manager for The Nature Conservancy (TNC) in Indiana. “For more than 40 years, TNC has worked with its conservation partners on safe, prescribed fires throughout the state, but those are only on lands we own and manage. This new legislation will facilitate private landowners to also use this essential tool to manage their property and improve habitat.”
“We are grateful to the General Assembly and Gov. Braun for supporting this legislation. Indiana needs prescribed burning to restore the health of our landscape. First we must start by restoring a culture of fire. This legislation lays that foundation. Generations from now, our rural landscapes and economies will be better for it,” said Michael Spalding, Coordinator for the Southern Indiana Sentinel Landscape Program at the Conservation Law Center.
- Marsh, D. G. 2022. The Coming Out Place. Indiana Magazine of History 118:1–40.
