The smoke over Fairbanks is from a fire the state is choosing to let burn

The smoke drifting over Fairbanks and the Denali Borough on Thursday is coming from a wildfire that state managers are watching rather than fighting — because for now, it threatens no one.

The Tatlanika Fire, burning about 25 miles east of Clear, has grown fast: from an estimated 982 acres on July 8 to roughly 2,000 by Thursday, according to climate specialist Rick Thoman, with smoke visible from the University of Alaska Fairbanks. A recon flight found trees torching in black spruce and tundra.

The fire sits in a Limited Management Option Area — remote country where the state generally lets fire play its natural role unless it starts to threaten communities, homes or infrastructure. No structures are threatened now, so the fire stays in monitor status, with crews ready to act if that changes.

Not everyone is comfortable with the approach. Some residents have pushed back, citing the smoke and the worry that a small fire left alone can become a large one.