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SAMS VALLEY — The Nature Conservancy plans to begin pile-burning of cleared woody debris Wednesday on the north side of Lower Table Rock in the latest part of an oak habitat-restoration and wildfire-reduction project there. Contract crews hope to burn piles on the first of 66 acres beginning Wednesday, if weather and air conditions are conducive to burning and the smoke can be minimized to protect public health, according to the conservancy. The burn area is south of Tresham Lane and Highway 234 and is on land where contractors cut and stacked brush, small trees and other fuels last March. The land has a mix of ownership, including the Bureau of Land Management, the Nature Conservancy and some private holdings. Contractors touched off some test burns Tuesday that proved promising for the actual burning, which could take up to a week to complete, said Molly Morison, the Conservancy’s southwest Oregon preserves manager. “I’m excited that we finally have some good conditions for pile burning,” Morison said. The work is the latest step in the Klamath-Rogue Oak Woodland Health and Habitat Conservation Project , which is looking to reclaim oak woodlands and the wildlife that rely on them. The project includes a patchwork of dense woodlands left intact for bird, plant and animal species that rely on them, Morison said. Thinning some of the dense oak woodlands will also reduce the potential for high-intensity wildfires and give the rare “legacy” oaks a leg up in an age of climate change. Separate burns are planned for the southwest side of Upper Table Rock under a different oak-restoration project. Reach Mail Tribune reporter Mark Freeman at 541-776-4470 or [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter at www.twitter.com/MTwriterFreeman.