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1. DO STANDING TREES IN CLOSE PROXIMITY TO PILES INCREASE THE RISK OF ESCAPE?

Trees near piles may be scorched by fire. Fire is a natural ecosystem service utilized as a tool in the restoration of many Colorado forest types, including those in Summit County. Some  scorching may occur adjacent to the piles. Should a tree become engulfed and torch, the risk of escape is extremely unlikely:

• The area will be covered in either snow or asphalt, and other non-combustible materials when the decision to burn is made and will have a minimum of 3” of snow on the ground.
• The likelihood of a tree “torching” and those embers starting a fire is so low that it cannot be effectively modeled with common fire modeling software.

(An example of a pile burning near trees)

2. HOW WILL ANY SPREAD OF FIRE BE MANAGED AND WILL YOU HAVE ENOUGH HOSE ON-SITE TO REACH ANY PILE THAT MIGHT GET OUT OF CONTROL?

There will be two Type 6 Wildland Fire Engines on site in support of this operation and adequate staffing for each shift of burning, which includes qualified Engine Bosses. Each engine is equipped with the minimum “National Unit Standard” of specific quantities of hose, fitting and accessory requirements, able to meet specific hoselay requirements. We also plan on supplying an additional 3000 feet of on-site hose. It is likely that burning operations will be conducted in below freezing conditions and will require 3” of snow.

  (Hand-pile burning in a Northern Colorado spruce-fir forest)

3. HOW WILL YOU PREVENT EMBERS FROM LANDING ON NEARBY STRUCTURES AND CAUSING FIRE? WHAT PRECAUTIONS WILL ENSURE THAT THIS RISK IS MINIMIZED? HOW WILL YOU ADDRESS EMBERS THAT ARE CAST FROM THE PILES INTO

It is every homeowner’s responsibility to be “Firewise” and ensure that all elements of their home are not prone to ember reception. Common receptors include shake shingle rooves and dirty, dry gutters.

• The likely temperature range for when the burn will be conducted is so low that it changes fire behavior characteristics to the point that even if embers are cast from the piles, they lose efficacy and are not able to start new spot fires.
• The pile composition and structure are not conducive to ember production and burn “cleanly”, very much like a campfire.
• Operations will be conducted either during or after a significant snow event to ensure that there is a minimum of 3” of snow on the ground.

4. HOW WILL STAFF BE ABLE TO MONITOR ALL THE PILES IN EACH UNIT AT ONE TIME?

It is common practice to manage multiple burning piles during a shift. In other words, one individual may ignite several piles and spend the remainder of their time during that shift dedicated to “chunking” (moving material on the periphery of the pile into the fire), monitoring and communicating progress of the area that they are managing. Each individual managing a given area is a qualified wildland firefighter integrated into an incident command system led by a qualified burn boss. Under this system of organization, firefighters can rapidly communicate and operate within the foundation of goals and objectives built into the prescribed fire burn plan.

5. ARE THERE ANY HELPFUL LINKS WHERE I CAN GET MORE INFORMATION?

Yes, please visit any of these websites to learn more:

• CO DFPC Prescribed Fire Implementation Planning Guide: https://csfs.colostate.edu/media/sites/22/2019/12/2019_3-20_2019_DFPC_RX_Fire_Implementation_Planning_Guide.pdf
• Pile Burning Lessons Learned: https://fireadaptednetwork.org/pile-burning-lessons-learned/
• Firewise: https://csfs.colostate.edu/wildfire-mitigation/colorados-are-you-firewise-program/