County

Fire! BLM prescribed projects begin this week

MEEKER – Fire crews from the Bureau of Land Management White River Field Office are ready to conduct several prescribed burns beginning this week.
Initiation and completion of prescribed fire projects is weather dependant. If weather conditions are favorable, the treatments listed below will be conducted over the next two weeks.
Carl’s Hole is targeted for 40 acres in west central Piceance Basin, Duck Creek sage bottoms. Ignition will be conducted by hand crews and the project will require one to two days to complete on BLM and private lands.
The 1,800 acre East Jordan project is in the BLM Windy Gulch Wilderness Study Area. It is situated seven miles west of Meeker in the Strawberry Creek area along Rio Blanco County Road 7. Fuels to be burned in a mosaic pattern are Gambel oak, sagebrush, serviceberry, snowberry, and Pinion-Juniper. Expected duration is one to two days and a helicopter will be utilized for aerial ignition.
Segar Mountain, slated for 1,000 acres, is nine miles southwest of Meeker and four miles south of Kendall Peak Communications Site on BLM land. Targeted vegetation for this project is oak brush, service berry, snow berry, sagebrush and encroaching Pinion-Juniper. A helicopter will be used for aerial ignition. Areas under and around power lines have been mechanically prepped for this project.
Smoke may be visible to Meeker and surrounding areas including County Road 7 and Highways 64 and 13.
The main purpose of these projects is to reduce hazardous vegetation and break up the dense fuel continuity to lessen the chance for intense wildfires. The burns have the added benefit of improving habitat for wildlife by regenerating new growth.
Weather conditions will be closely monitored and burns are initiated only if conditions are within the parameters for safe and effective fires. Each prescribed burn conducted by the BLM has gone through an environmental analysis and has a detailed burn plan developed in advance, along with appropriate smoke permits obtained from the state agencies responsible for air quality control.
For more information contact Jim Michels, Fuels Specialist for the BLM White River Field Office at
(970) 878-3821.

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  • Jake Blazon at bat for the Meeker Cowboys. The MHS team brought home two wins against Olathe and lost two against the North Fork Miners. The location for this weekend’s games has not been announced due to weather and field conditions. Read the full story online at ht1885.com.
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🐰 Hopping 🐰 your way this morning! Catch up on everything thats 🐣 hatching 🐣 in Rio Blanco County this week.
Need a copy? Signing up is fast and easy! Visit our website at ht1885.com/subscribe to get a copy sent to your door every week! 
We appreciate all your continued support!
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Rio Blanco County and the White River and Douglas Creek Conservation Districts are still asking for your help to identify additional hatch-outs of crickets so that control efforts can be put in place. The success of the program will highly depend upon local landowners and the public helping to locate crickets as soon as they hatch.  See last week’s paper for a list of ways to help or contact the County Weed & Pest District at 970-878-9670 or the Conservation District office at 970-878-9838 with any questions. Website: www.WhiteRiverCD.com
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Jake Blazon at bat for the Meeker Cowboys. The MHS team brought home two wins against Olathe and lost two against the North Fork Miners. The location for this weekend’s games has not been announced due to weather and field conditions. Read the full story online at ht1885.com.
Jake Blazon at bat for the Meeker Cowboys. The MHS team brought home two wins against Olathe and lost two against the North Fork Miners. The location for this weekend’s games has not been announced due to weather and field conditions. Read the full story online at ht1885.com.
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🐰 Hopping 🐰 your way this morning! Catch up on everything thats 🐣 hatching 🐣 in Rio Blanco County this week.
Need a copy? Signing up is fast and easy! Visit our website at ht1885.com/subscribe to get a copy sent to your door every week! 
We appreciate all your continued support!
It's that time again! Another edition of great local news stories is 🐰 Hopping 🐰 your way this morning! Catch up on everything thats 🐣 hatching 🐣 in Rio Blanco County this week. Need a copy? Signing up is fast and easy! Visit our website at ht1885.com/subscribe to get a copy sent to your door every week! We appreciate all your continued support!
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Mormon crickets have hatched near Rangely. They were all sighted on BLM land north of Hwy. 64 near the junction of CR 96 and CR 1, down a dirt road near the Moffat County line. The picture shown was taken yesterday by Mary Meinen from Rangely. She says the crickets are about the size of a ladybug (less than 1/2”). Some of them are actually yellow in color but most of them are darker. They are milling around and getting ready to start moving soon. Note: Photo is not to scale. Rio Blanco County and the White River and Douglas Creek Conservation Districts are still asking for your help to identify additional hatch-outs of crickets so that control efforts can be put in place. The success of the program will highly depend upon local landowners and the public helping to locate crickets as soon as they hatch. See last week’s paper for a list of ways to help or contact the County Weed & Pest District at 970-878-9670 or the Conservation District office at 970-878-9838 with any questions. Website: www.WhiteRiverCD.com
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