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It may still be April, but fire season is about to start in the Berkeley hills.
Officials will ignite prescribed burns as part of a new approach by the state to reduce wildfire risks. Crews will set small fires to burn trees and brush, thereby thinning dry fuels that cause wildfires to spread quickly.
"There will be notices of smoke in the air," said Cal Fire Director Thom Porter.
Cal Fire is focusing now on an area between Berkeley, Tilden Park and Orinda.
This north Orinda project will cover almost 1,800 acres in a part of the Bay Area that is at the highest risk, according to a Cal Fire priority list. It's one of 30 aggressive vegetation management projects that are ready to start next week.
Work is expected to be finished before the end of the year.
Besides the prescribed burns, crews will also cut new firebreaks, expand fire trails so if a blaze breaks out, it will be easier for firefighters to control it.
"Part of what we're doing is trying to herd a fire that we don't know where it's going to stop," said Porter. "And all fuel breaks and all fuel reductions helps us herd fires."