Boulder County Forest Health Outreach Updates – Aug. 14, 2012
Today’s forest health outreach update covers the following topics:
* Forest Stewardship Tip of the Day: “Wildfire Mitigation Subtraction Measures”
* Upcoming Trainings: Series of Wildfire Mitigation trainings begins this Thurs. 8/16/12
* Reminder: Nederland Area Sort Yard is open through Oct. 20

Forest Stewardship Tip of the Day: “Wildfire Mitigation Subtraction Measures”

Forestry Tip of the Day: The State of Colorado has a “Wildfire Mitigation Measures Subtraction” program available for the income tax years 2009 through 2013. The program is administered by the State of Colorado Department of Revenue. For more information about the qualifications and limitations please see the Colorado Department of Revenue’s FYI Income 65 fact sheet.  (http://www.colorado.gov/cs/Satellite?blobcol=urldata&blobheader=application%2Fpdf&blobkey=id&blobtable=MungoBlobs&blobwhere=1251781330468&ssbinary=true)

In case you were curious, all forest landowners in Boulder County have an authorized “Boulder County-wide” Community Wildfire Protection Plan. Many landowners in the county also have a locally approved Community Wildfire Mitigation Plan.

Why is this important??  You might be eligible to subtract from your federal taxable income

50% of the costs incurred in performing wildfire mitigation measures that meet the specified qualifications. Please contact the State of Colorado directly if you have questions.

Upcoming Trainings: Series of Wildfire Mitigation trainings begins Thurs. 8.16.12

Boulder County and the Colorado State Forest service are offering another series of wildfire mitigation trainings for residents interested in learning more about creating defensible space around their homes.

The “Keys to Creating and Maintaining Effective Defensible Space” trainings present lessons learned from the Fourmile Canyon Fire and other recent fires and give participants concrete steps to take to prepare their homes and forests for future fires. In the spring we offered this same training in 7 communities (290 folks in attendance) throughout Boulder County and many attendees told us they left feeling motivated and empowered to take action on their land.

Presentations will be given by Boulder County and Colorado State Forest Service staff and local firefighters will be available to answer questions.

The program focuses on the findings of nationally recognized wildfire researcher Dr. Jack Cohen, U.S. Forest Service’s Fire Lab in Missoula, Montana, who for the past two decades has been studying how structures ignite during wildfires. His research shows that landowners who take precautionary action can dramatically increase the likelihood of their homes surviving the next fire.

Training # 1 – Fourmile Canyon Area (This Thursday!)
When: Thurs., Aug. 16 – 6:30-8:30 p.m. 
Where: Boulder Mountain Lodge – 91 Fourmile Canyon Drive
Sponsors: Four Mile Fire Protection District

Training # 2 – Lyons Area
When: Tues., Aug. 28 – 6:30-8:30 p.m. (Tentative Date)
Sponsors: Lyons Fire Protection District
Where: Lyons Fire Station # 1 – 251 Broadway

Training # 3 – Jamestown/Left Hand Canyon Area
When: Thurs., Sept. 6 – 6:30-8:30 p.m.
Where: Jamestown Town Hall, 118 Main St.
Sponsors: Jamestown and Left Hand fire protection districts, Town of Jamestown

Reminder: Nederland Area Sort Yard is open through Oct. 20

The Nederland area Community Forestry Sort Yard located at 291 Ridge Road just north of Nederland is now open to area residents. It is open from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m., Tuesdays through Saturdays, through Oct. 20. The sort yard is a free location to dispose of slash and logs.

As a reminder the sort yard does not accept logs which are currently infested with mountain pine beetles until after Sept. 15 (after beetle flight has ended for the year). Also, the sort yard does not accept raked up pine needles. Pine needles that you have cleaned up for fire mitigation needs can be hauled to the Western Disposal site at 5880 Butte Mill road on the east side of the City of Boulder. Call (303) 444 – 2037 for more info. County residents receive a 60% discounted rate at Western Disposal threw a partnership with Boulder County. One landowner informed me that they hauled 500 lbs of bagged pine needles for $9. To clarify, if the pine needles are still attached to a branch then we will accept them at the Nederland sort yard site. If the pine needles need to be raked and “scooped up” then they should go to Western Disposal.

Cheers,
Ryan

Ryan Ludlow | Forestry Education & Outreach Coordinator 
Boulder County | Land Use Department
P.O. Box 471, Boulder CO 80306
O: 720.564.2641 | F: 303.441.4856
rludlow@nullbouldercounty.org | www.bouldercounty.org/ForestHealth
*Please visit our website to sign-up to receive emails about forestry workshops, community meetings, bark beetle management tips and more!