Prescribed Burn Planning With Ground‑Truth Fuel Moisture

Plan with confidence using real‑time fuel moisture intelligence.

Prescribed fire programs succeed when ignition lines are drawn on truth, not only on models and regional forecasts. DRYLINE brings site‑specific readings of both live and dead fuel moisture straight from the burn unit to your planning workflow, so you can open windows sooner, avoid unnecessary delays, and document every decision.

Why fuel moisture, and why now?

Weather drives fire behavior, but fuels ignite fires. Moisture content is the most direct indicator of whether a unit is ready to carry fire within your prescription. After rain or humidity spikes, fuels can rebound quickly—often faster than coarse forecasts suggest. Without ground truth, planners either wait too long or move ahead on uncertain footing.

With a long-life network of LoRaWAN sensors, DRYLINE reports localized conditions at practical time intervals, giving crews a continuously updated picture across stands, compartments, or treatment units.

What DRYLINE enables

• Continuously monitor live and dead fuel moisture: Track real‑time conditions to identify precise burn windows rather than relying solely on models.
• Target units accurately: Pinpoint stands and compartments that meet prescription, avoiding overly broad closures and costly rescheduling.
• Identify burn windows with confidence: See when fuels have dried sufficiently following rain or humidity events to support safe operations.
• Document decisions for review and compliance: Timestamped, localized readings provide a defensible record for planning, after‑action reviews, and interagency coordination.

How it works

• Field‑deployable moisture probes sample representative 10‑hour fuels, 100-hour fuels and live vegetation.
• Edge nodes transmit via LoRaWAN to a solar powered gateway back-hauled via cellular.
• Readings are aggregated in the cloud and visualized on maps and time‑series views to track unit readiness.

This architecture is designed to be simple to deploy, battery‑efficient, and resilient in remote conditions typical of prescribed fire operations.

Bringing moisture into your prescription

Add moisture thresholds alongside wind, RH%, VPD, and dispersion criteria. When a unit’s measured fuels cross into your acceptable range, you get a clear, defensible “go” that aligns on‑site observations with policy. When conditions fall outside prescription, records show exactly why decisions were delayed or deferred.

Getting started

We’re partnering with agencies and burn bosses to pilot DRYLINE in upcoming seasons. If you’re modernizing your program or building a defensible data trail for reviews and compliance, we’d love to collaborate.

👉 Schedule time with our team