To secure the long-term use of prescribed fire as a land management tool, The Nature Conservancy's Lake Wales Ridge Program has developed the Critical Smoke Dispersal Area (CSDA) GIS data layer for conservation sites associated with the Lake Wales Ridge in central Florida, USA. The CSDA data layer is intended as a land-use planning tool that provides guidance for the best locations of new development, according to development type, with 3.22 km (2 mi) from the edge of conservation areas in order to minimize smoke impact from prescribed fires. The spatial model used classifies the area surrounding conservation sites into four stacked buffer zones extending outward from conservation boundaries up to 3.22 km (2 mi). Each zone is suitable for specific types of smoke-sensitive development; development types of greater smoke sensitivity (e.g., interstate highways and hospitals) occur within zones with greater default distances from conservation boundaries than do types less sensitive to smoke (e.g., local rural roads). The distribution of smoke-sensitive development types among the four buffer zones is determined by a set of minimum distance criteria for roads, hospitals, aviation sites, residential and commercial areas, and other smoke-sensitive land uses. These criteria were developed by Nature Conservancy fire managers and reviewed by land managers of Lake Wales Ridge conservation sites. To identify the CSDA areas, a land-use analysis was conducted using ArcGIS Spatial Analyst's cost-weighted distance tool. To minimize fire management constraints resulting from new development, land-use planners can utilize the CSDA as a guide for placement either outside of the CSDA or within the appropriate buffer zones. Thus, if new development must occur within the CSDA, it can be placed in areas along with development of similar smoke sensitivity or at a distance that minimizes its smoke risk. In this way, smoke-sensitive areas can be concentrated, maintaining the low smoke sensitivity of remaining areas. The Conservancy presented the CSDA data to District One of the Florida Department of Transportation, and these data were approved for inclusion into their Efficient Transportation Decision Making process. The Conservancy has also coordinated with the Polk County Land Use Planning Department and the Central Florida Regional Planning Council to incorporate the CSDA into the Polk County Comprehensive Plan. © 2010, Tall Timbers Research, Inc.