The US Forest Service has been conducting a series of prescribed or controlled burns in the Forsythe Canyon/ Gross Reservoir area since April 7 and will conclude operations by May 7. The operation is being done with assistance and cooperation from multiple agencies and organizations including Boulder Watershed Collective, Boulder County Fireshed, county and state public health agencies, and local fire districts.

The treatment method being used is called a Broadcast burn which involves lighting fires across a tract of land to reduce fuel hazards on the ground and clean up thinned areas. Broadcast burns are generally done at this time of year when the snow is gone from the ground and the temperatures are still cool. Most of the slash piles in the area that resulted from the Forsythe II thinning project have already been burned. There are a total of 931 acres in the area that will be treated with this kind of prescribed burn over the next several years with a maximum of 340 acres per year. So far this year, 307 acres have been treated in the area using Broadcast burns.

Because of the smoke that is created from these prescribed burns, residents are advised to limit outdoor activity and people with respiratory health issues should consider evacuating until the smoke dissipates. N95 face masks can stop most of the particulates from wood smoke but cloth masks are considered ineffective. More detailed information on wood smoke and health can be found at https://cdphe.colorado.gov/indoor-airquality/ wood-smoke-and-health.

Prescribed burns are considered controversial due to the dangers of burns that can get out of control and the perception that they won’t stop large wildfires. The Calf Canyon/Hermit Peak fires in 2022 were two prescribed burns that escaped their boundaries because of faulty weather monitoring and became the largest wildfire in New Mexico history at 341,000 acres. The merged wildfires destroyed hundreds of homes and displaced thousands of people. The Lower North Fork fire in Jefferson County in 2012 was a prescribed burn that re-erupted and burned 4,401 acres. It destroyed or damaged 27 buildings and killed an elderly couple who couldn’t escape the flames.

Forest and fire officials acknowledge the dangers of prescribed burns but say the risks of not using fire to regenerate forests will result in larger uncontrolled fires, the loss of wildlife at extinction levels in some areas, and the creation of dead zones from ground sterilized by extraordinarily high temperatures. The low intensity fires from prescribed burns are meant to mimic forest conditions before the settlers arrived and preserve wildlife habitat and improve forest health.

Viewed from a distance and across time, prescribed burns on small sections of land are like pixels that merge together to reveal a new picture of a future forest that is still viable and sustainable. The risks of prescribed burns are real and ongoing during these operations. Residents should keep their grab-n-go boxes ready in case of an emergency evacuation. The Forest Service uses Facebook, Twitter, and emails to notify residents when prescribed burns are in progress. The search term is Roosevelt National Forest Alerts and Notices.