Mountain Bark Beetles have devastated thousands of acres of timber across Colorado and the mountain west. The beetle is beginning to make stronger inroads into western Fremont County
The Bureau of Land Management’s Royal Gorge Field Office is seeking public comment on an environmental assessment for a forestry project to treat bark beetle infested areas in Fremont County.
BLM Field Manager Keith Berger said the purpose of the project is to reduce the threat to public safety and infrastructure posed by beetle-killed trees in travel corridors and other high-risk areas as well as provide for resilient forests and diverse wildlife habitats. Berger said. “The project will also help us reduce the risk of severe wildfires and subsequent erosion and watershed damage.”
The Northwest Fremont Bark Beetle Salvage project is scheduled to take place on approximately 2,900 acres in northwestern Fremont County near Stoney Face, Waugh, and Jack Hall mountains. The environmental assessment analyzes three alternatives in detail that span from the effect of taking no action to salvaging dead and dying spruce trees to additional removal of green spruce at risk of beetle infestation. Activities under consideration include commercial timber harvest, non-commercial timber management and prescribed fire.
The preliminary environmental assessment and maps of the project area are posted on the BLM’s website at www.blm.gov/co/st/en/fo/rgfo/planning/rgfo_bark_beetle_project.html. Comments on the project can be sent to the BLM Royal Gorge Field Office, Attn: Ken Reed, 3028 East Main Street, Canon City, CO 81212, or email: rgfo_comments@blm.gov with "Spruce Beetle EA" in the subject line. The BLM requests that comments be submitted by August 31st.
Before including your address, phone number, e-mail address, or other personal identifying information in your comment, you should be aware that your entire comment—including your personal identifying information—will be publicly available at any time. While you can request in your comment to withhold your personal identifying information from public review, the BLM cannot guarantee that they will be able to do so.