The Oregon Department of Forestry’s Southwest Oregon District imposed a complete shutdown August 1 on public use of power-driven machinery. This shutdown includes any equipment that uses a petroleum fuel-powered, spark-emitting engine. The list of equipment this restriction affects is long, but it includes chain saws, brush cutters, mowers and generators.
This restriction does not apply to cutting irrigated green grass, or to machinery used for the commercial culture or harvest of agricultural crops. It also does not apply to industrial activities, which are currently regulated under Industrial Fire Precaution Level III (three).
The Oregon Department of Forestry’s Southwest Oregon District protects 1.8 million acres of state, private, county, and Bureau of Land Management lands in Jackson and Josephine counties. Fire season regulations also apply in county, state and BLM day-use areas and campgrounds.
For more information about the Oregon Department of Forestry’s fire season regulations, please call or visit the Southwest Oregon District unit office nearest to you:
- Medford Unit, 5286 Table Rock Rd., Central Point. (541) 664-3328
- Grants Pass Unit, 5375 Monument Dr., Grants Pass. (541) 474-3152