This is the Ute Park Fire on its first full day, Friday, June 1, seen from I-25. We had been to Colorado Springs for a family event and spotted the smoke on our way back to our New Mexico cabin, near Las Vegas (NM). Today (Sunday, June 3) the fire has spread to 32,000+ acres and is growing toward the southwest, in a drought-stricken area and fueled by dry grass, pinyon juniper, and ponderosa pine. As of yesterday (Saturday) evening, the fire team included 10 crews, 8 helicopters, 24 engines, 8 bulldozers, 2 water tenders. They have done a protective burn west of the village of Cimarron, and so far, the only structures damaged are a dozen unoccupied outbuildings belonging to the Philmont Scout Ranch. The main complex hasn't been damaged, horses and livestock are safe, and staff and scouts have set up at the Colfax County Fairgrounds in Springer.
If this is a human-caused fire, the carelessness angers us. We lament the loss of the beautiful trees. We worry about the communities of Cimarron and Ute Park, and pray that people and homes and businesses will be spared. Dramatic photos like this one scare the living daylights out of all of us. (That's a helicopter dropping water, lower center.)
But it's good to remind ourselves that wildland fires (fires that don't threaten human habitations) are a healthy part of the ecosystem.
Fires often remove alien plants that compete with native species for nutrients and space, and remove undergrowth, which allows sunlight to reach the forest floor, thereby supporting the growth of native species. The ashes that remain after a fire add nutrients often locked in older vegetation to the soil for trees and other vegetation. Fires can also provide a way for controlling insect pests by killing off the older or diseased trees and leaving the younger, healthier trees. In addition to all of the above-mentioned benefits, burned trees provide habitat for nesting birds, homes for mammals and a nutrient base for new plants
As of today, the Ute Park Fire is growing upward along the eastern slope of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. There is damage, yes, but given decent rains, the forest will renew itself. The people who are involved with this fire--fire fighters, local residents, visitors to the area--will remember it all their lives, but the forest losses are short-term, in mountain time. And in mountain time, the loss will be a gain.
Reading note. The presence or absence of natural fire within a given habitat is recognized as one of the ecological factors contributing to the perpetuation of plants and animals native to that habitat.--Administrative Policies for Natural Areas of the National Park System, 1968. Found on "Fire Quotes and Perspectives," National Park Service