Prescribed burn near Union Valley Reservoir sending smoke into Lake Tahoe Basin

Smoke from a prescribed burn on the east side of Union Valley Reservoir in the El Dorado National Forest sent smoke into the Lake Tahoe Basin Tuesday.

The U.S. Forest Service is burning 240 acres over a two-day period in that area.

Prescribed burns in the Lake Tahoe Basin were scheduled to start this week but have been postponed since the area is still under fire restrictions.

Fire managers plan to burn approximately, 12,671 acres of El Dorado National Forest land this fall, winter and spring using a combination of understory and pile burning techniques.

The actual number of acres burned will depend on weather and air quality conditions which may limit the number of days that burning can take place.

Prescribed burns in the Whittell Forest between Washoe Lake and Lake Tahoe created so much smoke and unhealthy air last week that they postponed the project.