Durango residents could see smoke coming from Animas City Mountain if the Bureau of Land Management conducts a planned prescribed burn this month.
BLM intends to burn up to 652 acres on the mountain bordering the city. The burn is one of three prescribed fires scheduled in Southwest Colorado in September.
“We will look at the weather and our fuel moisture to see if we can actually conduct a prescribed burn,” said BLM Fire Mitigation Specialist Deana Harms.
The Animas City Mountain burn was originally scheduled for this past spring but was delayed because of dry weather.
Harms said the seasonal monsoon has improved conditions for the burn. However, officials have to evaluate future weather conditions in order to determine the safest time to burn.
“We want to make sure the weather’s going to be favorable to make sure that it doesn’t escape,” she said.
Two other burns are scheduled for Southwest Colorado:
- The Dawson Project Area prescribed burns will treat up to 883 acres of piñon, juniper and mixed mountain shrub. The area, split between San Miguel and Dolores counties, is 13 miles east-northeast of Dove Creek and 10 miles east of Egnar.
- Crews will continue treating and burning up to 1,112 acres of ponderosa pine and Gambel oak within the West Dolores Rim Project Area, located about 7 miles east of Dove Creek.
BLM hasn’t started the burns yet because the agency wants to make sure the objectives for them are met under the weather conditions. BLM wants to conduct the burns before winter arrives.
The goal for the prescribed burns is to improve forest health and wildlife habitat.
Harms said because Animas City Mountain is close to a highly populated area, it is a Type 1 burn, which makes the process more complex because of the personnel needed.
Conducting the burn will depend in part on available BLM resources. Because there are fires burning in other areas of the U.S., it has been a challenge to assemble a crew to take on a Type 1 prescribed burn.
“Having enough resources to pull a Type 1 burn off is something we look at, too,” Harms said. “Because if we’re going to do it, we want to make sure it’s successful in all levels.”
To ensure firefighter and public safety, there will be a brief closure of the Animas City Mountain area as well as city trailheads and access points.
During the burn on Animas City Mountain, there will be some impacts on air quality. However, BLM is planning to burn early in the day to avoid smoke going into town overnight.
“So with prescribed burning, you’re going to have short impacts, or small impacts of smoke,” Harms said. “Whereas with wildfires, you’re going to have smoke long term until that fire is completely out.”
Smoke will most likely be visible in the area several days after each burn because of smoldering vegetation.
Harms said the Animas City Mountain burn will most likely take one to three days to complete. The other burns could take only a day, but it depends on the number of units needed to burn.
“The Southwest District has a robust prescribed fire program that seeks to reduce hazardous fuels, improve habitat for wildlife, and protect communities from wildfires. The burns that will be conducted this fall are a part of our efforts to improve ecological conditions and reduce risk to communities throughout the district,” said James Savage, BLM Supervisory Fuels Specialist in a news release.
No road closures will be enacted as a result of the burns, but camping near the location is discouraged.
The BLM obtained smoke permits from the Colorado State Air Pollution Control Division, which identify atmospheric conditions under which the burns can be implemented.
Prescribed fire smoke may affect residents’ health. For more information, visit https://www.colorado.gov/pacific/cdphe/wood-smoke-and-health.
tbrown@durangoherald.com
