Fire clears land for state park
April M. Washington, Rocky Mountain News
Published October 3, 2007 at midnight
Billowing clouds of white smoke visible across the metro area this week isn't cause for alarm.
It's a controlled burn taking place at Staunton Park, northwest of Conifer. The planned prescribed burn may occur for several days depending on the weather conditions, park officials said.
The Colorado Forest Service and the Elk Creek Fire District in Jefferson County are conducting the burn.
The cloud of smoke was easily visible from downtown Denver.
The Staunton Park area is currently closed to the public, but is expected to become the state's 43rd state park. The park likely won't open for years, state officials said.
The 3,700-acre park is in a thick woodlands near U.S. 285.
Up to 75 acres of grass and leaf litter in ponderosa pine forests will be burned within the park to thin it out.
The burn is meant to reduce fuels that can ignite wildfires, including dead wood, dormant grass and thick layers of pine needles.
The burn is part of an ongoing forest management project funded, in part, with state lottery grants and federal funds to improve the park's appearance and to promote the forests' regrowth.
The forest service has conducted several controlled burns in the area since 2004.
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