Summit County finds perfect window for wood pile and landfill burns in Colorado
Like many things in life, finding the right timing can be everything, and recent conditions are giving local communities a chance to get rid of excess wood safely.
Steve Lipsher, Summit Fire and EMS Community Resource Officer said that's especially true with burning things on our Colorado landscape. Whether it's excess wood at the Summit County Landfill, pile burns with the U.S. Forest Service or even private property burns, the key is getting the right conditions for the weather.
"The basics are that we need snow on the ground, we don't want fire spreading further than where we intended it to be," Lipsher said. "Beyond that, it can't be howling winds, but some winds are really good to disperse smoke and everything."
Thanks to the single digit temperatures Wednesday, it was a great opportunity in Summit County to get things crisped up.
"Cold snowy days like today work out pretty well because sometimes they obscure smoke and attract less attention," Lipsher said with a little laugh. "Which means fewer unnecessary 911 calls."
Lipsher pointed out they put out plenty of messages warning the public that smoke will be seen from public burns, but they still get plenty of calls anyway from concerned residents and visitors.
Even with the fuss, it's an important step for mountain living. Without clearing wood from the forest, it elevates the wildfire risk. As for the Summit County Landfill, the excess wood they get from contractors over the years could sit in the landfill with everything else, or it could be burned up to save space for things that can't be burned.
