New Jersey Pine Barrens

Fire Behavior in the New Jersey Pine Barrens

While the Southeast is a leader in the use of prescribed fire, prescribed fire is also used as a land management tool across the nation and the world, including in the pine barrens of New Jersey. The videos on this page show what fire behavior looked like inside several prescribed fires conducted in the New Jersey pine barrens in 2019. The videos were taken using a transparent, water-cooled enclosure which houses a commercial 360-degree camera. The apparatus was developed by researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology.

A Surface Fire During a Prescribed Burn in the New Jersey Pine Barrens on March 17, 2019

This video shows a low-intensity, relatively slow moving surface fire during a prescribed burn at the Franklin Parker Preserve. Flame lengths remain low, with footage after the burn clearly showing that flames did not significantly reach into the mid-story or crowns of the trees.

A Crown Fire During a Prescribed Burn in the New Jersey Pine Barrens on March 27, 2019

This video shows a crown fire during a later prescribed burn at the Franklin Parker Preserve. In this fire, flame lengths were much longer, with the fire consuming both debris on the forest floor and reaching into the mid-story and crowns of the trees. While this type of fire behavior is often associated with catastrophic wildfires, crown fires do occur during prescribed burns. Certain ecosystems and restoration efforts require this type of fire behavior. However, such burns should only be attempted by experienced burners with sufficient equipment and other resources.