| Contacts: | Erin Curtis, Public Information Officer, (970) 244-3097 | |||
| Lee Ann Loupe, USFS Public Affairs Specialist, (970) 945-3237 |
Winter Pile Burns Planned in Mesa County
Grand Junction, Colo. – Federal fire officials from the Upper Colorado River Interagency Fire Management Unit say they could begin to burn slash piles in Mesa County as early as this week.
Crews will aim to burn up to 300 piles on Black Ridge west of the Colorado National Monument, 100 piles on the Uncompahgre Plateau south of highway 141 and 60 piles five miles east of the town of Mesa.
The piles were generated from fuels reduction projects. Crews will be conducting the burns when weather, moisture, and fuel conditions allow January through March.
During burn periods, smoke is likely to be visible from the town of Mesa, and the Black Ridge burns will be visible from Grand Junction, Fruita and Loma.
Weather conditions will be monitored and burns will be implemented when conditions are suitable for safe and effective prescribed burns and good smoke dispersal. All prescribed fires in the Upper Colorado River are conducted under an approved burn plan with smoke permits from the State of Colorado.
The Upper Colorado River Interagency Fire Management Unit is composed of the BLM Glenwood Springs and Grand Junction Field Offices; Grand Valley Ranger District of the Grand Mesa, Uncompahgre and Gunnison National Forests; the White River National Forest; and the Colorado National Monument. It encompasses more than 4.5 million acres oriented along the Interstate 70 corridor from the Continental Divide on the east to the Utah state line on the west.
The BLM manages more than 245 million acres of public land, the most of any Federal agency. This land, known as the National System of Public Lands, is primarily located in 12 Western states, including Alaska. The BLM also administers 700 million acres of sub-surface mineral estate throughout the nation. In Fiscal Year (FY) 2011, recreational and other activities on BLM-managed land contributed more than $130 billion to the U.S. economy and supported more than 600,000 American jobs. The Bureau is also one of a handful of agencies that collects more revenue than it spends. In FY 2012, nearly $5.7 billion will be generated on lands managed by the BLM, which operates on a $1.1 billion budget. The BLM's multiple-use mission is to sustain the health and productivity of the public lands for the use and enjoyment of present and future generations. The Bureau accomplishes this by managing such activities as outdoor recreation, livestock grazing, mineral development, and energy production, and by conserving natural, historical, cultural, and other resources on public lands.
2815 H Road Grand Junction, CO 81506