HAILEY - There's a lot going on around public lands in Blaine County, and a couple times a year, county commissioners ask representatives of the agencies that manage those lands to come in and give them an update.

On Tuesday, Ketchum District Forest Service Ranger Kurt Nelson updated the commissioners on this year's fire season. Fires have hit only 53 acres in his district, 28 of which were in wilderness areas, where the fires were observed and monitored.

"We got 'em all, and it was a nice, cool, wet summer," Nelson said. If the weather cooperates, he said, a few controlled burns will be conducted in the Little Wood River area by the end of October.

Of more concern is what's happening in the area hit by the 2007 Castle Rock Fire. The 48,000 acres are susceptible to bark beetles, and Nelson warned of a pending epidemic.

Pouches of pheromones intended to "firebreak" the forest were unsuccessful due to high winds that blew the beetles into formerly unaffected areas. Nelson said aerial applications of the pheromones, which give the beetles the message to move on to other areas, may be necessary.

Epidemics last four to six years in a typical cycle, Nelson said, but the effects of the beetles, which eat away the living interiors of the trees, will be seen next year in the Upper Warm Springs and Upper College areas of Bald Mountain. Though the affected trees are still green, they're dead and will be red and brittle by next summer.

Nelson also said records were set last year for personal firewood cutting, and permits are still in high demand this year.

Commissioners also heard about strategies that have been in development since 2004 for the Boise, Payette and Sawtooth national forests. Intended to help manage the forests better for harvest, recreation and species preservation, the proposed changes will have exceptions for emergencies like fires, public safety, prior rights and treaties, and the need to meet other statute requirements like the Endangered Species Act.