U.S. Bureau of Land Management issued the following announcement on Sept. 11.

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Tucson Field Office is offering free firewood permits for collecting downed wood at the Las Cienegas National Conservation Area (LCNCA) Sept. 15 – Oct. 31. Permits issued will be valid for one and a half months from the date of approval. 

To maintain social distancing protocols, interested persons may obtain a permit and collection area map by emailing a request for a free permit application to mmccabe@blm.gov or calling Mark McCabe at 520-258-7218. Applications will be processed electronically and completed via email. 

Collection of dead and downed mesquite will be confined to the Cienegitas Campground Area and permits will continue to be issued until the wood removal target is reached. Each permit allows for collection of up to two cords of downed wood. Issuance of a permit does not necessarily guarantee the availability of dead and downed wood. 

“As a good neighbor and member of the community, we offer the collection of wood from trees that we have downed to improve hunting access and maintain wildlife corridors in the area,” said BLM Tucson Field Manager Jayme Lopez.   

Mesquite firewood is available because of the BLM’s ongoing grassland restoration program at the LCNCA. Invasive mesquite trees are downed to encourage growth of native grasses and improve wildlife habitat for wildlife, such as the pronghorn antelope. 

The 45,000-acre LCNCA is located 45 miles southeast of Tucson in Pima and Santa Cruz counties. The conservation area protects a landscape of rolling, oak-studded, grasslands and lush riparian areas that contain several of the rarest vegetative habitat types in the Southwest. 

Original source can be found here.