Controlled burns help the Pennsylvania Game Commission promote animal habitats on game lands around the state.

One area it has shown results is on the Broad Mountain, home to more than 17,000 acres of game lands.

This year, the commission has proposed burning more than 400 acres on the Broad Mountain in hopes of restoring what are known as pitch pine-scrub oak barrens ­— an ideal habitat for animals.

“We are just trying to restore some of those barrens areas by using fire. There are a lot of endangered plants as well as insects that depend on that habitat,” said Mike Beahm, Northeast Region Land Management supervisor for the game commission.

The controlled burns usually take place on the Broad Mountain in early May, depending on the weather. When an area is chosen, game commission workers will remove trees in a perimeter around the area they want to burn.

This year, they’ve identified an area on the west side of Route 93.

Beahm said smoke from the burn could affect drivers who are passing over the Broad Mountain.

Controlled burns promote the growth of oak trees, which provide a food source for many birds and mammals. Their high nutritional value make them sought after by animals preparing for winter.

Oak trees are more resistant to fire than less desirable tree species like black birch and red maple. Through a controlled burn oak trees can again become the dominant tree species in a given area.

The game commission is planning another much smaller burn in a different area of game lands in Carbon County prior to the Broad Mountain burn.

That will include just 14 acres off Unionville Road and Smith Road in Penn Forest Township. The purpose of that fire will be to promote native grass species and reduce fuels, Beahm said.