SANTA MARIA, Calif. — A permitted range improvement burn has been planned in conjunction with the Santa Barbara County Fire Department at the Righetti Ranch south of Orcutt, between Highways 101 and 135, during the burn window of October 15, 2019 – January 1, 2020. The goal of this prescribed burn is to improve rangeland and reduce the risk of wildfire. Prescribed, or planned, fires typically burn less intensely than wildfires. Prescribed burns can help prevent the spread of wildfires, and can reduce impacts to watersheds that can result in soil loss and sedimentation.