Seeing smoke in the hills near Pismo Beach? Here’s where it’s from

South County residents seeing a plume of smoke coming from the Pismo Beach area don’t need to worry.

Cal Fire is conducting a controlled burn of 100 acres of hazardous vegetation along Thousand Hills Road, east of Pismo Beach, according to a news release from the agency.

The controlled burn was coordinated between local landowners, Cal Fire, the SLO County Fire Safe Council, the SLO County Air Pollution Control District and the National Weather Service, the release said.

The burn is part of the Thousand Hills Vegetation Management Project and is used to minimize fire hazards and reduce the likelihood of future wildfires, the release said.

The burn started at 9:45 a.m. Monday and should finish on Tuesday by 6 p.m., according to the release.

Local air quality can be monitored at SLOCleanAir.org.

This story was originally published October 2, 2023 at 3:08 PM.