By Sabrina Kohrt
To reduce the risk of catastrophic wildfire and improve forest health, the Columbine Ranger District is planning to burn approximately 3,000 acres in the Beaver Meadows and Southern HD mountains of the San Juan National Forest. The planned burn areas are approximately 10 miles northeast and 12 miles southeast of Bayfield. Operations may begin as soon as late August and may continue into November, depending on weather conditions and availability of fire personnel and other resources.
Ignitions will take place over several consecutive days and operations may take several weeks to complete. Burning operations will be conducted by district personnel and other fire resources from the Forest Service and partner agencies, using both ground and aerial ignition. These burn units are part of the larger Vallecito-Piedra and Southern HD’s Integrated Vegetation Management projects aimed at reducing hazardous ground fuels and long-term risk of catastrophic wildfire, as well as restoring ponderosa pine ecosystems, and improving wildlife habitat.
Daytime smoke is expected to travel to the north/northeast. Nighttime smoke is expected to travel downslope into Beaver Creek, the Piedra River, and south to the Pine River, just north of Ignacio. Smoke will be heavier in the mornings that follow burning operations, although should clear by midday. Smoke will be visible from Arboles, Bayfield, Pagosa Springs, as well as the U.S. Highway 160 and 151 corridors near those towns.
Learn how smoke from prescribed fire may affect your health by visiting the Colorado Department of Public Health website at https://www.colorado.gov/pacific/cdphe/wood-smoke-and-health.
The forests in Southwest Colorado are part of a fire-adapted ecosystem, which has historically experienced frequent, low-intensity fires on a large scale. Prescribed fire replicates that fire regime under controlled conditions. Prescribed fires will only be ignited when all weather, fuels, and smoke requirements are met.
For more information, please contact District Assistant Fire Management Officer (Fuels) Noah Daniels at noah.daniels@usda.gov.
Sabrina Kohrt is Acting Public Affairs Officer, San Juan National Forest.