A day after federal lands agencies lifted fire restrictions on Bureau of Land Management and U.S. Forest Service Lands in La Plata County, county officials followed suit. La Plata County commissioners on Tuesday agreed to lift fire restrictions on all unincorporated parts of the county.
Stage 1 fire restrictions have been in effect since June, and Stage 2 restrictions were in place from July 9 to July 17.
Of the 10 indicators of fire danger, La Plata County now does not meet any of them, Durango Fire & Rescue Authority Marshal Karola Hanks said.
The moisture levels of both large and small fuels have increased thanks to rains throughout the county, fire officials told commissioners Tuesday.
The restrictions had limited fires, smoking and the use of explosives, torches and power tools outdoors.
Though fire restrictions no longer are in effect, residents still need to obtain a permit from their local fire department before they conduct open burns with the exception of religious fires, burns on lands classified as agricultural and recreational fires that are no bigger than 2-by-3 feet.
The permit requirement is a year-round policy that has been in effect for about a year and a half, but this is the first year the department has fully enforced it, Hanks said.
Residents mistook Tuesday’s announcement that fire restrictions were lifted on public lands to mean that they could resume all open burning, which is not the case, Hanks said.
“I had people burning like crazy with today’s headlines,” she said.
People who have had permits in the past can call their local fire department to renew the permit.
Residents who do decide to conduct burns and do not require a permit also are encouraged to call dispatch so officials can be aware of burns going on in the area.