Fire

Wildland fires are a force of nature that can be nearly as impossible to prevent, and as difficult to control, as hurricanes, tornadoes, and floods. 

Wildland fire can be beneficial or destructive. In the right place at the right time, wildland fire can create many environmental benefits, such as reducing dry grasses, brush, and trees that can fuel large and severe wildfires and improving wildlife habitat. In the wrong place at the wrong time, wildfires can wreak havoc by threatening lives, homes, communities, along with natural and cultural resources. 

The Forest Service has been managing wildland fire on National Forests and Grasslands for more than 100 years. However, the Forest Service doesn’t do it alone. Instead, the agency works closely with other federal, tribal, state, and local partners. Homeowners are encouraged to and should do their part by creating defensible space around their property. 

This is more important than ever because, over the last few decades, the wildland fire management environment has profoundly changed. Longer fire seasons that consist of bigger fires and more acres burned on average each year; more extreme fire behavior; and wildfire suppression operations in the wildland urban interface (WUI) have become the norm.  

To address these challenges, the Forest Service and its other federal, tribal, state, and local partners have developed and are implementing a National Cohesive Wildland Fire Management Strategy that has three key components: resilient landscapes, fire adapted communities, and safe and effective wildfire response. 

The Rio Grande National Forest's Fire Management program combines the elements of  fire suppression, fire prevention and fuels management. Check out the menu items or see the information blocks below.