Fire burning in Beetle Kill trees, Let it Burn or no???

[SledsWest]

With the fire burning in Grand County at Sheep Mtn area with the extensive beetle kill, should the state let the fire go or fight it with all their resources??

http://www.9news.com/news/article.aspx?storyid=156332&catid=339

I say let it burn, fire is a healthy part of a forests' life cycle.

PS - I can't start a poll, can one of you paying suckers, I mean members, I mean moderators edit this thread to be a poll please?

 

[silvester]

I work a mile from where it's burning, there is a fair amount of development within a mile of it from due west to north. If it was in the middle of no where maybe, but it seems anything out of control risks damaging anything developed if it gets going good with the wind. We asked this same question as 20plus trucks were stationed around the Camp today. Forest fires serve a purpose for forest health but since we build stuff all over the forests it is just makes the need to fight the fires more necessary.

 

[milehighassassin]

On top of that, when an area burns it is a major risk for mudslides and landslides.

The problem is with as dry as it is, once these things get going they are very hard to stop.


How did the fire start? Naturally or man made?

 

[SledsWest]

On top of that, when an area burns it is a major risk for mudslides and landslides.

The problem is with as dry as it is, once these things get going they are very hard to stop.


How did the fire start? Naturally or man made?

Are mudslides and landslides really that pervasive and threatening out there in Grand County?

 

[milehighassassin]

Are mudslides and landslides really that pervasive and threatening out there in Grand County?

I would say anytime you have mountains/hills it is an issue (gravity sucks!).

I am by no means a Geo Engineer, but I know that has been issues where there have been forest fires in the past.

 

[PJ-Hunter]

If they can protect the residential and commercial areas then let it burn into the backcountry. That stuff needs to burn. As of right now, it's a PITA to walk through and it will only put the starting of sledding further into the year. With all of the fallen trees it will make riding early even more dangerous.

 

[AndrettiDog]

The problem is that the longer it burns and bigger it gets the less chance there is to control it. If I had a house in the high country I wouldn't be too happy. As others have said, there is major erosion and water shed issues too. We need the pine beatle to burn in sections until it is all gone. Hard for that to happen though.

 

[milehighassassin]

Also, it is part of living here. People in California know they live in an Earthquake zone, people in Florida know about Hurricanes.

If you are going to live in the mountains you need to know that there is a chance your house might burn down because of a fire. Sure it is good to take a pro-active approach and do some prevention.

 

[ManBearPig]

Depends on your perspective

If you get the message "Prepare to Evacuate" as I did yesterday, then you defiantly want them to fight it on those leading edges coming your way. Everyone in Grand County knows a forest fire is and has been a potential danger for some time. It will happen again. We do what we can to prepare. I have taken down 115 trees on my property, upgraded to a metal roof, and have good fire breaks, but when a fire storm gets going in all the dead timber in the National Forest and the wind is right, well it is just grab your things and get ready to go. Luckily the winds laid down and looks to be fine for now. I do hope it burns up as much fuel is it can in the acres it is burning in now.
Either we allow people to harvest that dead timber on Forest Lands or we prepare for fires. Permits for logging on forest land are probably similar to getting a permit to drill for oil & gas, so I do the later knowing there is the risk of losing my home and business no matter how I and we prepare.
Thankfully, their actually had been a substantial amount of logging up in Churches Park over the past couple years just north of this fire which looks to have helped. Just need more if it.
Should make for some good tree riding if we get the snow.

 

[PJ-Hunter]

I hope that it doesn't head west and over the hill. Then I might get a vacation from work that I don't want.

 

[94fordguy]

PS - I can't start a poll, can one of you paying suckers, I mean members, I mean moderators edit this thread to be a poll please?

Poll added for ya, lol

 

[silvester]

Well there isn't allot left too it as of the end of the day today. I watched helicopters dip water from our pond the last two days and by 4:30pm today there was just allot of smoldering areas. I'm sure if the wind picked up things could change but hey it's raining now so maybe it'll be out sooner than later. And I must say the Sikorsky Skycrane is one bad mother to watch working. 8000+ Hp flying over you at 100ft is pretty impressive.

 

[PJ-Hunter]

You got rain???!!! Sunny and warm all day yesterday here. Not that far from you.

 

[milehighassassin]

When I drove up from Denver yesterday, it was raining in Georgetown. Actually rained pretty hard. We could use more of that

 

[egesledder]

I'd say stop it, then find some other way to take care of it... Here is what my house looks like after the Boulder fire a month ago and I wouldn't want to wish that on anyone:

and my sled:

 

[SledsWest]

I'd say stop it, then find some other way to take care of it... Here is what my house looks like after the Boulder fire a month ago and I wouldn't want to wish that on anyone:

and my sled:

I do feel bad that you lost everything and hope you can recover quickly, BUT.....See post #8

 

[backcountryislife]

Also, keep in mind, these are two VERY different areas. The 4 mile fire was in a relatively inhabited area, whereas the Church (NOT CHURCH'S dammit) park fire is a bit out there. We have an opportunity to get rid of some of the current fuel with minimal danger to life & livelihood of nearby residents. In boulder this wasn't even close to being an option.

two words...

Defensible space.

IF you live in the mtns & you're nestled in the trees because you like the look of it, you're asking for trouble. Both my places have a solid 100+ feet to larger fuel, I sure hope that when the fire does come my way I'm right about that being enough.

Just had a friend in Idaho Springs lose a house also (fire in garage), something I can't imagine.

 

[milehighassassin]

100 feet? LOL, that is better than nothing but I think they recommend 400 yards to stop a fire from jumping.

 

[backcountryislife]

100 feet? LOL, that is better than nothing but I think they recommend 400 yards to stop a fire from jumping.

Weeeelll... I don't own 400 yards on the place in Empire... so I'm SOL there. (only got trees to the north, about 90-100 feet)

The place in Dumont though, I've got near that on 3 sides, but to the east I'm only about 120-130 feet.

Wow though, 400 YARDS (1/4 mi)???? That's crazy. I don't know too many people who own that much land in each direction! The more I think about it, that can't be right. 4 football fields....

here you go, this is the article that I was looking at last year.

"Defensible Space Management Zones
Defensible zones
Figure 1: Forested property showing the three fire-defensible zones around a home or other structure.

Zone 1 is the area of maximum modification and treatment. It consists of an area of 15 feet around the structure in which all flammable vegetation is removed. This 15 feet is measured from the outside edge of the home’s eaves and any attached structures, such as decks.

Zone 2 is an area of fuel reduction. It is a transitional area between Zones 1 and 3. The size of Zone 2 depends on the slope of the ground where the structure is built. Typically, the defensible space should extend at least 75 to 125 feet from the structure. See Figure 2 for the appropriate distance for your home’s defensible space. Within this zone, the continuity and arrangement of vegetation is modified. Remove stressed, diseased, dead or dying trees and shrubs. Thin and prune the remaining larger trees and shrubs. Be sure to extend thinning along either side of your driveway all the way to your main access road. These actions help eliminate the continuous fuel surrounding a structure while enhancing homesite safety and the aesthetics of the property.

Zone 3 is an area of traditional forest management and is of no particular size. It extends from the edge of your defensible space to your property boundaries."

I'm pretty much in line with what this was saying.

 

[Tec]

The fire is going to burn till the snow covers the ground, the forest service has stated that the interior of the fire ground is to dangerous for fire fighters with all the beetle kill and snags. The main effort now is keeping the fire line from spreading as homes are now 2 miles away, One being my next new construction painting job for November/December