NEW CASTLE — The Bureau of Land Management plans to burn about 25 slash piles northeast of the Canyon Creek subdivision this month.

Federal fire crews from the Upper Colorado River Interagency Fire Management Unit in the fall created an 11-acre defensible space buffer on BLM lands on the east side of the community by thinning trees and removing low branches that can carry a fire into the canopy.

“This 11-acre buffer will increase public and firefighter safety by slowing any wildfires advancing towards homes in the area,” said Jamie Connell, Glenwood Springs BLM field manager, in a news release. “This fire break also reduces the risk of a wildfire burning from public land onto private land.”

The New Castle Fire burned about 1,240 acres in June and forced the evacuation of about 90 residences, calling attention to fire danger in the area.

Crews plan to burn the piles when wind and smoke dispersal will affect the subdivision least. Some drift smoke could impact homeowners for a short period of time. Anyone with health conditions that may be affected by short periods of smoke should contact Ody Anderson, the project leader, at 947-2800.

The BLM said the burning could take a week to complete, depending on weather, smoke and fuel conditions. The piles will be burned under the authority of an approved burn plan and when moisture in adjacent fuels is at acceptable levels.
Additional slash piles farther east from the homes will be burned next winter.

Homeowners near the project have also begun working with the Colorado State Forest Service to build defensible space on their private land.