Transfer Station Burn Suspended After Community Concerns

SIERRA CITY — Recently, Sierra County residents were notified that the burn pile at the Sierra City transfer station would be ignited. Public Works Director Bryan Davey says that at the time, 10 days of rain were forecasted, and that conditions seemed ideal for burning. However, the announcement was met with considerable pushback from residents. After review and further consultation with Forest Service personnel, who were not as confident in the forecast, Public Works decided to suspend the burning.

Davey says the community response has become increasingly hostile toward burn operations at the Sierra City and Sattley transfer stations, and that lighting the burn pile has been met with growing backlash. The reaction stems from several wildland fires caused by transfer station ignitions, which are often unmonitored for long periods while the piles are lit. Most recently, the Sierra City burn pile escaped containment in January of 2025, leading to a 2-acre wildfire that the Forest Service was called in to put out. In a letter to supervisors, Sierra City Fire Department Deputy Chief Eric Kubly called leaving the burn pile unmonitored a “dangerous, careless, and a completely unnecessary risk,” and said the county was not following best practices guidelines defined by Cal Fire.

As a result, Davey says that his department may have to take a serious look into whether burn pile operations should continue at the transfer station or be indefinitely suspended. After January’s fire, several alternatives were discussed, including purchasing an expensive air-curtain burner to be transported between sites, but burn piles remain by far the most cost-effective way to deal with green waste at the stations. Supervisor Lee Adams suggested that more discussion take place at the next Supervisors’ meeting about how to move forward with both Sierra City and Sattley burn piles.