BOULDER, Colo. — The City of Boulder has kicked off its largest wildfire-focused grazing effort to date.
The cattle will graze about 65 acres of what Boulder calls Wildland Urban Interface areas where homes meet open space.
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“These areas are a priority because they represent locations where wildfires can directly threaten homes, infrastructure, and public safety,” said Boulder Fire-Rescue public information officer Jamie Barker.
The cattle started grazing about a week ago starting from Alpine Avenue and will move north to Lee Hill Drive helping clear dry grasses and other vegetation that can fuel fast-moving wildfires.
One of the areas a part of the grazing is near the Goat Trail, where back in April, the Goat Trail Fire forced those living nearby to evacuate.
“The target conditions are four-inch to eight-inch grass height across project areas that generally range between 100 to 300 feet from homes and neighborhoods in the Wildland Urban Interface,” said Barker.
The city said it has used livestock grazing for several years to support agricultural operations and ecological management on open space properties.
“Using targeted grazing specifically for wildfire-risk reduction in Wildland Urban Interface areas is a newer application,” added Barker.
Some Boulder residents say they support this program.
“This is another way to mitigate it. I think it’s a good idea,” said Boulder resident Vicki Bynum.
City leaders said grazing is one of several wildfire mitigation tools being used to reduce fuel loads. Grazing also reduces flame length and rate of spread in grasses by a factor of about a half.
“In addition to reducing grass height, cattle trample and break up dead grass, which also helps reduce fuel hazards,” said Barker.
Barker told Scripps News Denver the most compelling evidence that grazing is effective in reducing fire spread comes from the 2022 NCAR fire.
“Post-fire assessments also identified differences in fire effects between treated and untreated areas,” said Barker.
The cost of these grazing programs ranges from $200 to $1,000 per acre. Funding comes from the voter-approved climate tax fund wildfire mitigation budget, Boulder County grant funding, and the Open Space and Mountain Parks operating budget.
“It behooves us to really pay attention to the weather, pay attention to the fuel around us, try to mitigate that away from our houses and do the best we can,” said Bynum.
For residents who live in Wildland Urban Interface areas and have experienced repeated evacuations, any effort to reduce wildfire risk is welcome.
“The danger has increased our climate is different. We have had the driest winter that I can remember. I think it’s a good idea because we don’t have the manpower to remove a lot of the flammable material and it really is dangerous,” said Bynum.
The cattle grazing program includes vegetation sampling to look at any potential changes in plant communities over time.
“Wildlife ecologists and vegetation specialists evaluate project areas on a site-by-site basis,” said Barker.
The project is expected to continue for the next few weeks. Some trails may be temporarily closed while cattle are grazing, and visitors are asked to follow any posted signs.
“No long-duration trail closures are planned; only brief closures while cattle are being moved between project areas,” added Barker.
More grazing projects are expected for south Boulder later this summer.
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