SMOKE MANAGEMENT
FORECAST AND INSTRUCTIONS
SALEM FORESTRY
WEATHER CENTER
OREGON DEPARTMENT
OF FORESTRY
ISSUED:
Wednesday, February 18, 2026 2:30 PM Sherri Pugh
1. DISCUSSION AND FORECAST FOR THE WESTERN OREGON
AREA FORECAST ZONES 601-623 and 639
The upper-level low
will shift inland with rounds of rain and mountain snow on Thursday. Rainfall amounts could range from
0.10-0.25”. Winds will
turn to come from NW-NNE, light at the surface. Snow levels will be down to 1500 feet and
lower at times. Mixing heights will be
high. Temperatures will be below
seasonable.
EXTENDED DISCUSSION
Brief upper-level
ridging on Friday will help lift freezing levels to near 3000 feet. A few showers are expected far
north but most will have a break from precipitation. Winds will turn again from SSE-SW. Mixing heights will lower some but continue
to be good.
Showers may move
inland near the coast but the bulk of the rain stays
offshore on Saturday. The next
upper-level low will be off the coast.
Freezing levels will be up to near 4000 feet and mixing heights will
decrease. Surface winds will be offshore
and brisk transport winds will come from SE-S.
Rain moves onshore Sunday as the
upper-level low moves closer. Winds will
be from SE-S with strong transport winds.
Temperatures will rise to near average and freezing levels will be at
4-5000 feet. Mixing heights will be fair
to good. Rounds of rain and snow
continue into next week.
2. DISPERSION
THURSDAY
Zone 601, 602,
603 and 612 (North Coast Range):
MORNING
Mixing height
below 500 ft early rising to 2000 - 3000 ft by late morning.
Transport wind N
to NE at 4 - 8 mph.
Surface wind light
and variable and controlled by local terrain.
AFTERNOON
Mixing height
rising to 3100 - 4100 ft.
Transport wind
shifts to NW to N at 4 - 8 mph.
Surface wind
increases to NW to N at 4 - 8 mph.
EVENING
Mixing height
lowers below 1000 ft.
Transport wind
WNW to NNW at 4 - 8 mph.
Surface wind WNW
to NNW at 4 - 8 mph.
Zone 605-611 and
639 (North Cascades):
MORNING
Mixing height
below 800 ft early rising to 2000 - 3000 ft by late morning.
Transport wind
light and variable and controlled by local terrain.
Surface wind
light and variable and controlled by local terrain.
AFTERNOON
Mixing height
rising to 3500 - 4500 ft.
Transport wind
increases to NW to N at 4 - 8 mph.
Surface wind similar to morning.
EVENING
Mixing height
lowers below 1000 ft.
Transport wind W
to NW at 4 - 8 mph.
Surface wind similar to afternoon.
Zone 615-620
(South Coast Range):
MORNING
Mixing height
below 800 ft early rising to 2000 - 3000 ft by late morning.
Transport wind NW
to N at 4 - 8 mph.
Surface wind light
and variable and controlled by local terrain.
AFTERNOON
Mixing height
2700 - 3700 ft.
Transport wind similar to morning.
Surface wind
increases to NW to N at 4 - 8 mph.
EVENING
Mixing height
lowers below 1000 ft.
Transport wind
NNW to NNE at 4 - 8 mph.
Surface wind NNW
to NNE at 4 - 8 mph.
Zone 616-623
(South Cascades):
MORNING
Mixing height
below 800 ft early rising to 2000 - 3000 ft by late morning.
Transport wind NW
to N at 4 - 8 mph.
Surface wind
light and variable and controlled by local terrain.
AFTERNOON
Mixing height
rising to 3500 - 4500 ft.
Transport wind similar to morning.
Surface wind
increases to NW to N at 4 - 8 mph.
EVENING
Mixing height
lowers below 1000 ft.
Transport wind similar to afternoon.
Surface wind WNW to
NNW at 4 - 8 mph.
OUTLOOK:
FRIDAY
Mixing height
below 1000 ft early rising to 2200 to 3200 ft by late morning rising to 2900 to
3900 ft during the afternoon. Transport
wind S to SW at 5 - 9 mph. Surface wind
light and variable during the morning becoming SSE to SW at 4 - 8 mph during
the afternoon.
SATURDAY
Mixing height
below 1000 ft early rising to 1800 to 2800 ft by late morning rising to 2400 to
3400 ft during the afternoon. Transport
wind ESE to SSE at 8 - 14 mph. Surface
wind E to SE at 4 - 8 mph.
SUNDAY
Mixing height
below 1000 ft early rising to 2000 to 3000 ft by late morning rising to 3000 to
4000 ft during the afternoon. Transport
wind SE to S at 10 - 18 mph during the morning becoming SSE to SSW at 15 - 25
mph during the afternoon. Surface wind
ESE to SSE at 4 - 8 mph.
3. BURNING INSTRUCTIONS FOR ALL ZONES IN THE
WESTERN OREGON AREA
- Valid for burning done Thursday, February
19, 2026.
=================================================================
Coast Range
Zone 601
Units should be
1500 tons or less, spaced 8 miles apart, and 10 miles from downwind SSRAs.
Zone 602 and 603
Units should be
500 tons or less, spaced 8 miles apart, and 10 miles from downwind SSRAs. Higher tonnage is possible south of T17S in
Zone 603 - call the forecaster.
Zone 612
Units should be
1200 tons or less, spaced 8 miles apart, and 10 miles from downwind SSRAs. Higher tonnage is possible south of Waldport
- call the forecaster.
Zone 615, 616
west of R8W, 618, and 619
Use standard guidance
matrix - see section 5 below. Avoid
burning directly upwind of the North Bend/Coos Bay SSRA.
Zone 616 east of
R9W
Units should be
900 tons or less, spaced 8 miles apart, and 10 miles from downwind SSRAs.
Zone 620
Units should be
600 tons or less, spaced 8 miles apart, and 10 miles from downwind SSRAs. Higher tonnage is possible south of the Rogue
River - call the forecaster.
Cascades
Zone 605, 606,
607, 608, 639, 611, 616, 617, and 623
Use standard
guidance matrix - see section 5 below.
Ensure adequate distance from downwind SSRAs for smoke to
dissipate. Verify transport winds away
from SSRA if burning within 10 miles of the SSRA in Zone 605 and 606. South of T30S in Zone 616 units should be
1000 tons or less, spaced 6 miles apart.
South of T30S in Zone 617 units should be 1000 tons or less, spaced 6
miles apart.
Zone 610
Units should be
1200 tons or less, spaced 6 miles apart, and 8 miles from downwind SSRAs.
Zone 620 and 622
Units should be
750 tons or less, spaced 6 miles apart, and 8 miles from downwind SSRAs.
Siskiyous
Use standard
guidance matrix - see section 5 below. Ensure adequate distance from downwind
SSRAs for smoke to dissipate.
==============================================================
4. SPECIAL NOTES:
The ODF forecast
smoke zones differ from the NWS fire zones and
are available at:
https://www.oregon.gov/odf/fire/documents/smoke-forecast-zone-map.pdf
Call the smoke management duty forecaster
at (503) 945-7401 to
discuss burning. Please do not call individual's numbers to
discuss daily burning. If the forecaster is
not available,
leave a message and they will return your
call as soon as possible.
Avoid calling between 1:30 to 2:45 p.m.
The forecast is available on the Internet
at:
http://www.odf.state.or.us/DIVISIONS/protection/fire_protection/
Daily/smi.htm
Please ensure your units have been planned
and accomplished by
checking:
http://www.oregon.gov/ODF/Fire/Pages/Burn.aspx
A map of planned and/or accomplished burns
is located at:
http://geo.maps.arcgis.com/apps/webappviewer/index.html
?id=a7e321dc8fc444b7a33fbc67bc673a3b
The forecast/instruction telephone
recording is: (503) 945-7400.
To subscribe to or unsubscribe from the
email list for this
product, please go to the link:
http://weather.smkmgt.com/mailman/listinfo/
5. STANDARD GUIDANCE MATRIX:
* Greater than 5000 ft mixing height: Limit
to 150 tons per mile
from downwind SSRAs. Example: 75 tons
allowed if burned a half
mile from a downwind SSRA.
* 3000 - 5000 ft mixing height: Limit to 50
tons per mile if burning
within 5 miles of downwind SSRAs. Limit to
100 tons per mile if
burning 5 miles or beyond downwind SSRAs.
Example #1: 200 tons allowed if burned 4
miles from a downwind SSRA.
Example #2: 500 tons allowed if burned 5
miles from a downwind SSRA.
* Less than 3000 ft mixing height: No burning
within 5 miles of
downwind SSRAs. Limit to 60 tons per mile
from downwind SSRAs.
Example: 300 tons allowed if burned 5 miles
from a downwind SSRA.
* Ensure adequate spacing between units when
burning near downwind
SSRAs.
* Use of polyethylene (PE) sheeting on
greater than 75 percent of
piles in a unit with 60 percent coverage
per pile will allow a
50 percent increase in tonnage over the
existing instruction tonnage
for that zone.
* All exceptions must be coordinated with the
duty forecaster
prior to ignition.
6. BURN MONITORING:
Burns over 2000 tons must be monitored (OAR
629-048-0230(3) -
7/1/14). Monitoring of all burns is highly
recommended for both
smoke management purposes and wildfire
potential.