Aztec Springs Prescribed Burn Scheduled for January

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:  January 14th, 2020

Santa Fe, NM – The City of Santa Fe Fire Department Wildland Division and The Forest Stewards Guild are planning to take advantage of snowpack conditions to conduct a prescribed pile burn on city land near the municipal watershed starting January 15th and continuing on through February 21st, 2020 weather dependent.  The burn will be contingent on wind, relative humidity, temperature, and expected weather patterns and may be postponed and/or cancelled until conditions permit. Open Burning on a smaller scale will be conducted intermittently during this period to burn remote piles and assess conditions on site. This work is part of the Fire Department’s mission to reduce risk to lives and property from wildfire. It is also part of The Greater Santa Fe Fireshed Coalition to improve the health and long-term resilience of forested watersheds and communities by addressing wildfire. 

Due to the location of the Aztec Springs Prescribed Pile Burn and its proximity to the city smoke will be visible from City of Santa Fe, State Road 475, State Road 590, and State Road 84/285. Smoke may settle into lower elevations and drainages overnight but should lift by mid-morning. Lingering smoke may be present for up to two days after ignitions are complete. For information on the HEPA filter loan program go to https://www.santafefireshed.org/hepa-filter-loan-program.

During the burn period, information regarding the project can be obtained by calling the Santa Fe Fire Department Wildland Division at 505-955-3901.

###

$500 Mini Grants to support Community Wildfire Preparedness Day events available!

Wildfire Community Preparedness Day is an annual campaign that encourages people to come together on a single day to take action to reduce their wildfire risk. On May 2nd this year communities and organizations across the county will engage in a huge variety of activities including community chipper days, potlucks and discussions about reducing fire risk, planning phone trees and wildfire notification systems for your community, building go kits, etc.

To support Wildfire Preparedness Day NFPA and State Farm are offering $500 grants to fund any sort of wildfire risk reduction or preparedness activities.

Check this link below for information about applying. On the NFPA website, there are tips about how to apply and examples of past projects that have succeeded.

Applications are due on February 29th.

Wildfire Community Preparedness Day and grant application page at NFPA .

Scroll partway down the page to find the application. The official rules for the grant contest can be found here.

Also, check out our Fireshed ambassador page for more information on planning community wildfire action for your community:

http://www.santafefireshed.org/ambassador/

Here are two resources from our ambassador toolkit with ideas for community events:

Wildfire Preparedness Community Action Ideas

50 ideas for action to get you started

Pile burning to reduce wildfire hazard highlighted in article from the Santa Fe New Mexican

Photo by Matt Dahlseid of The New Mexican

The Santa Fe New Mexican recently published an article by Robert Nott that discusses the ongoing pile burning at Hyde Memorial State Park above Santa Fe. By burning piles during winter, the park intends to remove fuels that could add to the intensity of a wildfire if one occurred during fire season. The article highlights views from local Forest Service officials, the Sierra Club, and the Wild Earth Guardians regarding the practice.

https://www.santafenewmexican.com/news/local_news/forest-officials-say-leftover-piles-of-wood-could-pose-danger/article_6a5c69fc-1b7b-11ea-bf8b-2fe1526c2850.html

Prescribed Pile Burns Planned on Española Ranger District, Santa Fe National Forest

Check out a HEPA Filter

These filters are available during periods of wildfire and prescribed fire smoke impacts in the Fireshed area to individuals that are sensitive to smoke. We have a small amount of portable air cleaners that will filter the air in a large room such as a living room or bed room. These will be distributed on a first come- first served basis for predetermined time periods. You will need to provide contact info and come to the Forest Stewards Guild office in Santa Fe to sign for the filter and pick it up.  Please look over the HEPA Air Filter Check-Out Contract.

To check out a HEPA Filter contact Sam Berry at sam@forestguild.org or by calling 505-983-8992

SANTA FE, NM – Nov. 21, 2019 – Fire managers on the Española Ranger District of the Santa Fe National Forest (SFNF) plan to implement prescribed pile burns to remove woody debris from the Pacheco Canyon and Hyde Park fuels reduction projects as early as Dec. 5 if conditions, including snow pack, fuel moisture levels, air quality, wind direction and weather forecasts, remain favorable.

Winter is an optimal time to burn slash piles because snow on the ground keeps the fire from spreading to adjacent vegetation. The 150-acre Pacheco Canyon pile burn is off Forest Road 102 east of Tesuque Pueblo, and the 140-acre Hyde Park pile burn is near Black Canyon Campground off NM State Road 475, the road to the Santa Fe ski basin.

Generally, pile burns produce less smoke and burn with less intensity than broadcast burns across a larger landscape. Smoke from the pile burns may be visible from Santa Fe, Tesuque, Nambe, Los Alamos and Pojoaque as well as the I-25 and US 285/84 corridors.

Fire managers are also looking for an opportunity in 2020 to reschedule the previously announced prescribed burn in the Santa Fe Municipal Watershed to treat up to 350 acres north of Nichols Reservoir near Granite Point with hand and aerial ignitions.

The Santa Fe Watershed prescribed burn is specifically designed to improve and protect the 17,384-acre Municipal Watershed, which provides more than 40% of the water for the City of Santa Fe, by removing dead forest fuels and reducing the risk of high-intensity wildfire. Prescribed fire is always managed with firefighter and public safety as the first priority.

The SFNF manages all prescribed fires in compliance with New Mexico state regulations on air quality and smoke management. Smoke-sensitive individuals and people with respiratory problems or heart disease are encouraged to take precautionary measures. Information on air quality and protecting your health by using the 5-3-1 visibility method can be found online at the New Mexico Department of Health (NMDOH) Environmental Public Health Tracking (EPHT) website at https://nmtracking.org/fire. People with health concerns can also call NMDOH at 505-827-0006 for additional information. For information on the HEPA filter loan program, go to https://facnm.org/smoke#smokeanchor5.

Fire updates are posted on the New Mexico Fire Information website at www.nmfireinfo.com, www.facebook.com/SantaFeNF and Twitter @SantafeNF.

For more information, contact the Española Ranger Station at 505-753-7331.

New fireshed signage at Big Tesuque trailhead!

Next time you decide to hike the Big Tesuque trail, stop and check out the new fireshed sign at the trailhead. This sign is a result of a collaboration between the Fireshed Communications team, the Forest Stewards Guild, the City of Santa Fe Fire Department, and the Santa Fe National Forest to provide more education about the fireshed and local fire ecology to the public.

This trailhead is located within the Santa Fe National Forest and is a great spot to hike from mid-elevation ponderosa, white pine and oak into higher elevation spruce and firs. The fire regimes of these two distinct forest types differ from one another and thus are treated differently from a restoration perspective. The trailhead sign explains these ecological foundations and speaks to fire’s important role in each ecosystem.

This trail winds through the upper reaches of the watershed above the village of Tesuque. This is an important area for forest health since healthier forests = clean water!

If you have out of town guests and they are interested in hiking in the forest, send them to this sign at the Big Tesuque trailhead to help ground them in the ecology of the landscape before their hike.

Enjoy recreating in your public lands within the Greater Santa Fe Fireshed!