Cape Cod National Seashore to Present - Fire as a Tool for Preserving Cultural Landscapes

Date: September 30, 2014
Contact: Bill Burke, 508-255 -3421 ext. 14

Fire is a tool that has been used by Native American cultures for thousands of years, and its use continues today in many public and private forests and preserves. At Cape Cod National Seashore, fire is used under strict scientific and weather related controls, for minimizing threats from wildfire, and for maintaining both cultural and natural landscapes. A one-hour presentation on the use of fire as a tool for preserving cultural landscapes will be held on Tuesday, October 7 at 6:30 PM at the Salt Pond Visitor Center in Eastham.

Cape Cod National Seashore Fire Management Officer Dave Crary, and Park Historian Bill Burke will team up to share how prescribed cutting and burning is restoring long lost historic fields, Thoreau's heathlands, and vintage vistas within Cape Cod National Seashore. The program is part of the national seashore's fall symposium, a five-week series on Tuesday nights to share with the public the national seashore's diverse resources and programs, ranging from animal migration and salt marsh restoration, to tracking coastal change and the upcoming National Park Service Centennial in 2016. All programs are free and wheelchair-accessible. The series will culminate on October 28 with a presentation by Cape Cod National Seashore Superintendent, George Price, State of the Seashore: Successes and Challenges of 2014, and a Look Ahead to 2015 and the National Park Centennial in 2016.

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