BELLEVUE, WI (WTAQ) – The Village of Bellevue is beginning a series of controlled burns on Friday.
“It’s actually going to be quite low key. There’s not going to be Green Bay metro fire department trucks there, it’s actually an environmental crew is doing the burn,” said Village Administrator Diane Wessel. “This is a controlled burn to cut back the non native species it actually improves the wildlife habitat…We will be doing this in several areas around the village. All communities do this for keeping that habitat good and keeping the grasses down, those invasive species.”
They’ve contracted with NES Ecological Services to conduct the prescribed burns within village limits.
“The burn actually creeps its way backwards. So it’s not gonna be raging flames, it’s going to be a slow creeping, low burn…Probably will only see a couple of trucks, they won’t be fire trucks, and they’ll see people out there that are working on it probably with drip torches,” Wessel explained. “By doing that, there’s a very low risk of any kind of spread or causing additional problems, but it also gives the opportunity for any critters in the area to get out of the area.”
The initial burn will be on Rodeo Drive, which is off of Santa Monica Boulevard, which is off of Main Street. Smoke could be visible from Interstate 43.
For people who live in that area, Wessel says to simply be prepared.
“There will be some smoke, so that’s why we recommend that they shut their doors and not hang out the clothes on the line. It’s going to smell similar to a campfire,” Wessel told WTAQ News. “The weather conditions are conducive for it. It’s still wet enough for the native grasses to not be killed off by it, and we have to have just the right temperature, humidity, and wind going from the right direction.”
The village will notify residents about future controlled burns via social media and press releases as early as possible, but because the burns are weather dependent, Wessel says it can be difficult to pinpoint exact dates and times long in advance.
