A lot of factors are taken into consideration when determining what the objectives should be when planning a prescribed burn. From helping to eliminate invasive weeds to burning duff and fine fuels, prescribed fire is a useful tool.

As the Harney Basin Wetlands Collaborative, a collaborative of the High Desert Partnership, seeks to restore Malheur Lake, there are a trio of studies currently in progress that are examining where carp congregate, what affects water turbidity and what is causing the lack of emergent vegetation in the lake.