Refuge staff plan to take advantage of the spring weather to burn the wetland in Spitzie Bottom. The objectives of these burns are to reduce excessive fuel loads and to improve the wildlife habitat conditions in those areas. The burn at Spitzie Bottom is being done to reduce the amount of area that cattails and bulrush cover the wetlands and for waterfowl habitat improvement. Smoke from the burns may be visible from Colorado Highway 318 and Moffat County Road 10 and 10N from now until late May on the days of the burns and a few days after the burn.
Weather conditions will be closely monitored, and the burn will only be initiated if conditions are favorable for firefighters to contain the burn within the project boundary. Each prescribed burn conducted by the Browns Park NWR has a detailed fire plan developed in advance, along with appropriate smoke permits obtained from the State of Colorado. Prescribed fires are one of many tools public land managers use to reduce the risk of catastrophic wildfires while improving wildlife habitat and overall forest and range health. For more information contact Stephen Barclay, Refuge Manager, at 970-365-3613 extension 102.
Read the official news release from the United States of Department of Interior. This information has also been added to our current wildfire map.
