Fire Management Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge

MORE INFORMATION

The Service provides public notification of an intended burn through several media channels a week or two in advance of the burn. Notification is also provided to the public on the actual day of the burn as well on radio and television.

For more information about prescribed burns at RMA NWR, contact Greg Gulan , Fire Operations Technician at 303-289-0165.

Fire Crew At Work

Important Links

The National Fire Plan

Wildland Urban Interface

Fish and Wildlife Fire Management

Fire Leadership

Wildfire Foundation

Fire Wise

PRESCRIBED BURN AREA
BURNED AREA

POST BURN GROWTH

PRESCRIBED FIRE ~ FIRE MANAGEMENT

Fire Wall Section 7 Fire is used to promote the health of grasslands much like a doctor develops a prescription for a sick patient. The goals of prescribed fire can reduce thatch, control weeds, reduce the amount of accumulated fuels, and invigorate native grasses and other plants. A fire prescription can be developed to accomplish one or more of these goals. The fire prescription refers to the type and amount of fuels, the time of year, the slope, topography, Controlled Burn On The Refuge and fire initiation to get the desired results.

Many years ago, Native Americans (Indigenous People, and First Nations/People) used fire to invigorate grasslands for bison herds. But whether from lightning strikes or from human inhabitants, fire drove the evolution of the North American prairies. Fire and the buffalo both helped to improve the health and diversity of grasslands.

"The story of the history of fire is fascinating. It is a story of how fire has shaped the landscape, our human history, our cultural evolution, and the natural and built communities in which we reside. It is a story of building up and burning down, of shaping and reshaping. While natural wildland fire has exerted its own shaping forces, humans using both native wisdom and scientific knowledge of fire ecology and fire management have also shaped fire regimes."
Read more about the HISTORY OF FIRE .

A Burn Along A Water Structure Burning has occurred on the Arsenal since the early 1900’s. Fire was used to clear irrigation canals, to remove stubble from cropland fields and improve pastures. From the 1940’s through 1996, the U.S. Army used fire for clearing waterways and to reduce the risk of larger, more destructive fires occurring from lightning strikes or human error.

Firefighters Using Drip Torch To Ignite Fire The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has conducted prescribed burns at the Refuge since 1997. As prairie restoration proceeds, fire is an indispensable tool because it stimulates the native prairie vegetation and helps control noxious weeds.

Using prescribed fire to accomplish habitat management goals in an urban environment is a challenge. With the development of new subdivisions the Refuge will soon be completely surrounded by urban developments. Prescribed burn plans are carefully written, reviewed and approved.

Before any prescribed burn the weather conditions must be within those specified in the burn plan or the fire cannot be started. Every burn is carefully planned with needed firefighters and equipment to keep the fire contained within the burn area.

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Last Updated: 9/5/08

FIRE ON THE PRAIRIE

Fire has been a natural process on the North American prairie for thousands of years. Periodic fires occurred naturally as a result of lightning strikes, often burning unchecked for days and covering many thousands of acres.

STATE OF COLORADO SMOKE PERMIT is required to burn. Smoke dispersal is a key element in every prescribed burn plan. Efforts are made to burn on days that limit the impact of smoke on surrounding communities.

Typically, prescribed burns are in the early spring, and also later in the fall. During the summer temperatures are too hot and fuels are too dry. Fires occurring on the Refuge in the summertime are typically wildfires as a result of lightning strikes.