EDGEFIELD, S.C. — Indiana Governor Mike Braun recently signed House Bill 1557 into law, which defines simple negligence with prescribed burning, providing legal protection and reducing barriers for fire practitioners and private landowners. This legislation will go into effect on July 1, 2025.
The bill aims to increase the use of prescribed burning, a beneficial but often intimidating practice, by reducing uncertainties and offering formal training and certification. The Midwest has seen considerable amounts of urbanization and the expansion of residents into more rural areas, which has led to more land becoming fragmented, which poses challenges for wildlife managers, biologists and practitioners for implementing prescribed fire on landscape.
The bill is expected to boost prescribed burning in Indiana. It is supported by various conservation and wildlife management organizations, including the NWTF, because of how crucial it is for Midwest ecosystems, particularly oak savannas, oak and hickory forests and native prairies, which all rely on fire.
“Essentially, this bill defines the requirements that need to be met to conduct a prescribed burn and helps define liability protections for practitioners,” said Ryan Boyer, NWTF district biologist for Michigan, Indiana and Ohio. “Prior to this legislation, there were a lot of uncertainties as to where liability may fall, should something not go according to plan. Working with the Indiana Prescribed Fire Council and others, we helped provide input and offer example language from bills passed in neighboring states to assist with crafting this bill.”
Prescribed burns can be intimidating for the general public, but it’s an extremely beneficial and cost-effective tool for land managers. Open grasslands and oak forests are fire-dependent ecosystems, which means fire is a necessary and natural part of the ecosystem’s function, and most of the species have evolved in the presence of fire. For example, oak trees have bark that is adapted to withstand moderate to low intensity fires without damaging the trees.
“In the upper Midwest, a lot of the ecosystems that wild turkeys rely on and thrive in benefit significantly from prescribed fire being incorporated as a management tool,” said Boyer. “It helps promote understory growth that’s desirable and favorable for a lot of native species and wildlife. Between those grasslands and forest habitats, which encompass much of where we work in the Midwest, prescribed fire is really a great tool to help us meet the objectives for managing those systems.”
Boyer also said he hopes this bill is a step towards bringing more prescribed burns to the landscape.
“This bill is going to allow us to see more prescribed fire within the state of Indiana being carried out in a safe manner and ensure that everybody has a clear understanding of the liability constraints and what’s expected of fire practitioners,” said Boyer. “It’s my hope that now that this is passed into law and has defined simple negligence that we’ll start to see more prescribed fire carried out on private lands and that it will generate more public support for it being carried out on our state and federal lands in Indiana to promote good conservation.”
About the National Wild Turkey Federation
Since 1973, the National Wild Turkey Federation has invested over half a billion dollars into wildlife conservation and has positively impacted over 24 million acres of critical wildlife habitat. The NWTF has also invested over $10 million into wild turkey research to guide the management of the wild turkey population and to ensure sustainable populations into perpetuity. The organization continues to deliver its mission by working across boundaries on a landscape scale through its Four Shared Values: clean and abundant water, healthy forests and wildlife habitat, resilient communities, and robust recreational opportunities. With the help of its dedicated members, partners and staff, the NWTF continues its work to provide Healthy Habitats. and Healthy Harvests. for future generations.
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