Mar. 18, 2009

Lisle Park District Controlled Burns Help Native Plants Thrive

The Lisle Park District parks department performed a controlled burn on approximately 6 acres of wetlands at River Bend Golf Course, 5900 S. Route 53 in Lisle on Tue., Mar. 17.

This spring, the district plans to burn 2.5 acres of wetlands in Community Park, 1825 Short St., and 1 acre in Old Tavern Park, located at Old Tavern Rd. and Normandy Dr. in Lisle.

“All burns are weather dependent,” says Aaron Cerutti, Lisle Park District superintendent of parks. Favorable weather conditions for controlled burns include winds under 15MPH and an evaluation of the site ecology.

Controlled burns assist in the propagation of native prairie species and allow the plants to develop deeper and healthier root systems. Prescribed fire naturally reduces or eradicates invasive plant species such as Buckthorn and Honeysuckle without the use of chemicals that may be harmful to the environment.

Burns are supervised by Cerutti and Scott Hamilton, Lisle Park District park manager. Hamilton is certified by the S130 and S190 wildfire course conducted by Pizzo & Associates. According to Hamilton, all prescribed fires are conducted with permits form the State of Illinois Environmental Protection Agency. “We contact the fire and police departments prior to and at the conclusion of the burn,” says Hamilton, “and we also send notices to residential addresses adjacent to the burn site to ensure that our residents our aware of the project.”

 For more information, on these and other projects taking place at the Lisle Park District, please call 630-964-3410 or email Scott Hamilton at shamilton@lisleparkdistrict.org.