Prescribed burns coming to Minneapolis' Nicollet Island Park
MINNEAPOLIS — Minneapolis' Nicollet Island Park will soon undergo some prescribed burns.
The Minneapolis Park & Recreation Board (MPRB) announced Tuesday that grasslands on the island's northern tip (G2 on the map below) and the southeast side near DeLaSalle High School (G1) will be burned between late October and early November.
The burns, which are part of the restoration plan enacted by MPRB partner Friends of the Mississippi River, will be conducted in order to "suppress weedy plant species and cool season grasses … to maintain healthy habitat for native plants and wildlife," according to the MPRB.
After the burn, the areas will be seeded to fend off erosion and subdue weedy species, and then reseeded in 2024 with native plants.
A qualified contractor, with workers trained by the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, will carry out the burns.
RELATED: Multiple prescribed burns planned in parts of Eden Prairie this autumn
Several sites in Eden Prairie will also be treated with prescribed burns this fall.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service says 350,000 acres across the country undergo prescribed burns each year. And in a typical year, wildfires burn 450,000 acres of grasslands.