Entirety of unincorporated Boulder County under Stage 1 fire restrictions

It is so dry in Boulder County, Colorado that Boulder County Sheriff Curtis Johnson enacted Stage 1 fire restrictions, effective at noon on March 30, for unincorporated areas of western Boulder County.

BCSO said fire restrictions are being implemented due to increasing fire danger, lack of moisture, and the forecast for hot temperatures.

“Although the eastern part of unincorporated Boulder County was already under Stage 1 fire restrictions as of Dec. 22, the unseasonably hot and dry weather has resulted in the need for restrictions throughout the entirety of unincorporated Boulder County,” the BCSO said in a statement March 30.

“The fire restrictions will be in effect until the fire danger in fuels and weather has consistently subsided,” BCSO said.

Persons found violating the fire restrictions may be convicted of a civil infraction and may be subject to a $500 fine. Higher fines may be imposed for subsequent offenses, BCSO said.

The fire restrictions prohibit the following:

• Building, maintaining, attending, or using an open fire, campfire, or stove fire on public lands. This includes charcoal barbecues and grills
• Fireworks sales, use, and possession, including permissible fireworks
• Shooting or discharge of firearms for recreational purposes on public lands except for hunting with a valid and current hunting license on public lands
  • Except on private property and approved shooting ranges
• Smoking, except in an enclosed vehicle or building, a developed recreation site, or while stopped in an area at least 3 feet in diameter that is barren or cleared of all flammable materials
• Operating a chainsaw or other gas-powered equipment without a USDA or SAE approved spark arrester properly installed and in effective working order, a chemical pressurized fire extinguisher kept with the operator and one round point shovel with an overall length of at least 35 inches readily available for use
• Welding or operating acetylene or other torch with open flame except in cleared areas of at least 10 feet in diameter and in possession of a chemical pressurized fire extinguisher
• Using an explosive or doing any kind of blasting work. This includes, but is not limited to, fuses, blasting caps, fireworks, rockets, exploding targets, tracers, and incendiary ammunition.
  • Except on private property.

The fire restrictions allow the following:

• Building, maintaining, attending, or using a fire as follows:
  • Fire in a device that uses gas, jellied petroleum, or pressurized liquid fuel that is properly equipped with a functional shut-off valve and located in an area at least three feet in diameter that is barren or cleared of all flammable material; or
  • A fully enclosed device that uses wood, pressed logs, or charcoal and is properly equipped with a ¼-inch or smaller spark arrester screen and located in an area at least ten feet in diameter that is barren or cleared of all flammable material; or
  • A fire in a permanent metal or concrete fire pit or grate that the U.S. Forest Service has installed and maintained at its developed recreation sites (campgrounds and picnic areas).
  • Private property.
• Agricultural Burning, as defined in Ordinance 2023-1, includes burning of cover vegetation by an agricultural producer on its own property for agricultural purposes, including preparing the soil for crop production, weed control, and maintenance of water conveyance structures.
• Open fires required in religious or spiritual ceremonies that are reported to and logged by the Boulder County Sheriff’s Office in advance.

BCSO said the following developed and improved recreation sites on the Boulder Ranger District within Boulder County allow fire in constructed, permanent fire pits or fire grates, in accordance with U.S. Forest Service policies and closures:

• Kelly Dahl Campground
• Rainbow Lakes Campground
• Camp Dick Campground
• Peaceful Valley Campground
• Meeker Park Campground
• Olive Ridge Campground
• Brainard Lake Day Use Picnic Site
• Mitchell Creek Picnic Site (Brainard Lake Recreation Area)
• Pawnee Campground (Brainard Lake Recreation Area)
• Arickaree Picnic Site (Brainard Lake Recreation Area)