| Contacts: | David Boyd, BLM Public Affairs Specialist, 970 319-4130 |
Interior smokes likely to continue on prescribed fire near Basalt (09-16-10)
SILT, Colo. – Fire officials with the Upper Colorado River Interagency Fire Management Unit expect some interior smoke and burning to continue on the prescribed fire near Basalt through the next week.
“The fire perimeter is secure, and we’re continuing to monitor it daily,” said Ody Anderson, fuels specialist with the Bureau of Land Management. “It’s normal to see some smoldering and burning within the perimeter of a larger fire – the fire is cleaning up unburned pockets of vegetation that pose little danger of spreading outside the fire perimeter.”
Crews successfully conducted the 100-acre East Sopris Prescribed Fire on Saturday three miles south of Basalt. The purpose of the burn was to reduce the risk of a wildfire burning from the public land onto private land, which helps improve public and firefighter safety. The burn will also bring much needed habitat benefits to wildlife in the area by creating openings in the brush and stimulating new, nutritious plant growth.
The fire has continued to smoke within its interior intermittently as expected. A short-term flare-up of an interior pocket Wednesday evening generated a precautionary response from local crews, but the flare-up did not threaten the perimeter of the burn.
Prescribed fires such as this are only conducted when conditions are ideal for a safe and effective burn. Moisture readings were taken in the vegetation daily leading up to the burn. Saturday offered fire officials the optimal conditions.
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.
2300 River Frontage Road Silt, CO 81652