The first of five articles reporting the findings in investigations in the effectiveness, the safety and the cost of the use of controlled burning as a tool for land clearing. No attempt is made to provide one formula for prescribed burning in California; each fire is an individual case to be planned on the ground.

Part II, “Selecting and Preparing the Area to Burn” will be published in April. Sections on “Planning and Organizing for the Fire,” “Managing the Fire-How, When, Where of Ignition,” and “Managing the Fire-Control, Patrol, and Mop-up” will be published in subsequent months.