Del Norte hosts defensible space workshop

DEL NORTE — The Colorado State Forest Service and their partners, Rio Grande and Center Conservation Districts, will host a workshop on defensible space and planning for a wildfire. The workshop will be held at 10362 County Road 7 N, Del Norte, on September 15 from 10 a.m. – 3 p.m. and is intended for homeowners interested in protecting their homes from a potential wildfire.

“The added haze in the air from the wildfires in the northwest part of the United States got the Rio Grande and Center Conservation Districts thinking about ways to help local homeowners prepare,” said Conservation District Manager Brenda Anderson. “We also think this is a good time of year to help prepare homeowners, who may be leaving for the season, make sure their houses are as safe as possible from wildfires when winterizing them.”

Alamosa District Forester Adam Moore, said, “This is a hands on workshop where in the morning residents will learn about how houses ignite during a wildfire and what is defensible space.”

This will be followed by lunch provided by the conservation districts. The afternoon will focus on practicing some basic methods on how to protect property from wildfires, such as pruning and what to do with simple hand tools available around the house. The afternoon will also feature a demonstration on how to properly use a wood chipper.  Rio Grande and South Fork Fire Departments have jointly purchased a wood chipper and participants will learn what they need to do to borrow this equipment.

Plan on attending if you live in the wildland-urban interface, or WUI, which is any area where structures and other human developments meet or intermingle with wildland vegetative fuels. “This can be a place in an obvious location like the mountains, surrounded by trees, or even in a small town like Del Norte, or even near the Rio Grande River,” Moore said.

The workshop is free for the first 20 people who register. Registration after that will be $20/person and will include lunch. To register for this event, call Brenda at 719-754-3400 x104 or email [email protected].  Registration will close September 13 or earlier if the attendee limit is reached.

The Colorado State Forest Service (CSFS) is a service and outreach agency of the Warner College of Natural Resources at Colorado State University and provides staffing for the Division of Forestry within the Colorado Department of Natural Resources. The CSFS provides technical forestry assistance, wildfire mitigation expertise and outreach and education to help landowners and communities achieve their forest management goals. The CSFS Alamosa District serves Alamosa, Costilla, Conejos, Rio Grande, Saguache, and Mineral counties.