Work leaves fire risk reduced near Camp Nelson

CAMP NELSON — The risk of a wildfire gaining a foothold in Camp Nelson is the lowest it’s been in recent years with the completion of regular and periodic projects aimed at limiting the debris that can fuel such fires.

Fire officials on the Western Divide Ranger District completed a pile burning effort in Camp Nelson just before last month’s snow storm, U.S. Forest Service officials announced today.

The piles were the accumulation of several year’s worth of material cleared from around private land to help protect the area from wildfires.

“Our fire staff put in extraordinary efforts while conditions were good to safely conduct this burn,” District Ranger Priscilla Summers said in a prepared release. “These conditions had not occurred for the two years prior.”

Typically, a few piles or remnants of piles are left to protect the soil from erosion, and to promote growth of new vegetation, fire officials on the forest report. To accomplish those goals, about 10 percent of the piles were left unburned to benefit wildlife in the area.

Some were not burned for safety reasons, fire officials report.

Those concerns include the risk of burning debris rolling onto Highway 190. Some were left so surrounding trees would not be damaged.

Summers said the treated areas are now much less susceptible to the spread of wildfire, helping protect Camp Nelson, Pierpoint Springs and neighboring communities.

Private landowners have also reduced the risk of wildfires spreading in the area by doing their part to treat the area that’s within 100 feet of their homes, as required by the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.

Now that some of the steep hillsides have been cleared of debris, the Forest Service is looking for ways to maintain them. Summers said one option under consideration is the use of goats.

This and other options will be analyzed in the future, she said.

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