SMOKE MANAGEMENT
FORECAST AND INSTRUCTIONS
SALEM FORESTRY
WEATHER CENTER
OREGON DEPARTMENT
OF FORESTRY
ISSUED: Monday,
January 12, 2026
2:30 PM Gary Votaw
**************** Air
Stagnation Advisory Information ****************
An Air Stagnation Advisory
may be in effect for your area (consult the link below for the latest
information). Please use extra precautions
and limit forestland burning to units that will not worsen air quality within
nearby SSRAs.
* Current Air Stagnation
Advisories: https://www.weather.gov/wrh/. *
*********************************************************************
*********************************************************************
* Special Protection Zone
(SPZ) provisions apply from November 15 through February
15. Prescribed burning is not allowed in an SPZ from December 1
through February 15 on days when the daily woodstove “Ordinance” is either
“Red,” “Exempt Wood Burning Device,” or “No Burning Period.” Burning
is allowed inside of SPZs all other days, but please use extra precautions and
limit forestland burning to units that will not worsen air quality within
nearby SSRAs. *
*********************************************************************
1. DISCUSSION AND
FORECAST FOR THE WESTERN OREGON AREA FORECAST ZONES 601-623 and 639
SHORT-TERM
DISCUSSION
An overhead
ridge will strengthen again on Tuesday to reinforce stagnation and very poor
burning potential. After patchy morning
fog skies will generally be sunny with temperatures in mountains around 10oF
above seasonal levels. Winds will be light
and variable, favoring SE.
EXTENDED
DISCUSSION
The
ridge will continue in control through this week with little change in
conditions. Mostly sunny skies and
temperatures above normal continue into the weekend. Burning conditions remain very poor each day. Winds on Wednesday will be very light and ranging from N-S while on Thursday and Friday they will be
NE-SE and slightly stronger.
2. DISPERSION
TUESDAY
Zone 601, 602,
603 and 612 (North Coast Range):
MORNING
Mixing height
below 1000 ft.
Transport wind E
to SE at 4 - 8 mph.
Surface wind
light and variable and controlled by local terrain.
AFTERNOON
Mixing height
remains below 1000 ft.
Transport wind
becomes light and variable and controlled by local terrain.
Surface wind similar to morning.
EVENING
Mixing height
remains below 1000 ft.
Transport wind similar to afternoon.
Surface wind similar to afternoon.
Zone 605-611 and
639 (North Cascades):
MORNING
Mixing height
below 1000 ft.
Transport wind
ESE to SSE at 5 - 9 mph.
Surface wind
light and variable and controlled by local terrain.
AFTERNOON
Mixing height
remains below 1000 ft.
Transport wind
becomes light and variable and controlled by local terrain.
Surface wind similar to morning.
EVENING
Mixing height
remains below 1000 ft.
Transport wind similar to afternoon.
Surface wind similar to afternoon.
Zone 615-620
(South Coast Range):
MORNING
Mixing height
below 1000 ft.
Transport wind SE
to S at 5 - 9 mph.
Surface wind
light and variable and controlled by local terrain.
AFTERNOON
Mixing height
remains below 1000 ft.
Transport wind
shifts to SE to S at 4 - 8 mph.
Surface wind similar to morning.
EVENING
Mixing height
remains below 1000 ft.
Transport wind
becomes light and variable and controlled by local terrain.
Surface wind similar to afternoon.
Zone 616-623
(South Cascades):
MORNING
Mixing height
below 1000 ft.
Transport wind E
to SE at 5 - 9 mph.
Surface wind
light and variable and controlled by local terrain.
AFTERNOON
Mixing height
remains below 1000 ft.
Transport wind
ESE to SSE at 4 - 8 mph.
Surface wind similar to morning.
EVENING
Mixing height
remains below 1000 ft.
Transport wind E
to SE at 4 - 8 mph.
Surface wind similar to afternoon.
OUTLOOK:
WEDNESDAY
Mixing height
below 1000 ft throughout the day.
Transport wind ENE to ESE at 4 - 8 mph during the morning becoming NNW
to NNE at 5 - 9 mph during the afternoon.
Surface wind light and variable.
THURSDAY
Mixing height
below 1000 ft during the morning rising to 1000 to 1700 ft during the
afternoon. Transport wind ENE to ESE at
10 - 18 mph. Surface wind NE to E at 8 - 12 mph.
FRIDAY
Mixing height
below 1000 ft during the morning rising to 1000 to 1600 ft during the
afternoon. Transport wind ENE to ESE at 8
- 14 mph. Surface wind E to SE at 6 - 10
mph.
3. BURNING
INSTRUCTIONS FOR ALL ZONES IN THE WESTERN OREGON AREA
- Valid for burning done Tuesday, January
13, 2026.
=================================================================
Coast Range
***Avoid ignitions before 10 a.m. in all
zones. Complete ignitions by 3 p.m. in all zones.***
Zone 601, 612,
and 616 east of R9W
Units should be
900 tons or less, spaced 12 miles apart, and 12 miles from downwind SSRAs. Higher tonnage is possible south of T29S in
Zone 616 - call the forecaster.
Zone 602 and 603
Units should be
300 tons or less, spaced 12 miles apart, and 12 miles from downwind SSRAs.
Zone 615, 616
west of R8W, 618, 619, and 620
Use standard
guidance matrix - see section 5 below.
Avoid burning directly upwind of the North Bend/Coos Bay SSRA. South of T35S in Zone 620 units should be 750
tons or less, spaced 12 miles apart, and 12 miles from downwind SSRAs.
Cascades
***Avoid
ignitions before 10 a.m. in all zones. Complete ignitions by 3 p.m.
in all zones.***
Zone 605 and 606
Units should be
300 tons or less, spaced 12 miles apart, and 12 miles from downwind SSRAs.
Zone 607, 608,
639, 620, and 623
Use standard
guidance matrix - see section 5 below.
Ensure adequate distance from downwind SSRAs for smoke to dissipate.
Zone 610, 611,
and 622
Units should be
1200 tons or less, spaced 12 miles apart, and 12 miles from downwind SSRAs.
Zone 616 and 617
Units should be
600 tons or less, spaced 12 miles apart, and 12 miles from downwind SSRAs.
Siskiyous
***Avoid
ignitions before 10 a.m. Complete ignitions by 3 p.m.***
Units should be
900 tons or less, spaced 12 miles apart, and 12 miles from downwind SSRAs.
==============================================================
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.