The County of Simcoe will be conducting a controlled burn on 100 acres of forest within the Tosorontio Tract, west of Base Borden and near the western boundary of the region, some time between mid-April and early May.
The burn will occur as conditions allow and is expected to take two days to complete.
Officials say a “highly experienced company” has been hired to conduct the burn and that trained personnel will be on site until it’s completely extinguished.
“Smoke impacts will be minimized by burning under specific wind and atmospheric conditions, however there will be times when large amounts of low-lying smoke will be present,” officials said in a statement.
“At other stages of the operation, a large smoke column protruding hundreds of metres into the atmosphere may be seen for many kilometres. There is no cause for alarm as this is all part of normal operations for the type of fuels being burned.”
The county doesn’t anticipate any road closures or disruptions to local services as a result of the burn.
When the date of the burn is confirmed, officials say they will make “every effort” to keep the public informed.
Controlled burns are common throughout Ontario and Canada. They have previously been conducted within Simcoe County forests, with recent ones occurring in 2020 in the Packard Tract in Essa and in 2018 in the Museum Tract in Springwater.