The Envision Forest Health Council is conducting a large wildfire mitigation project within the foothills of Methodist Mountain.
The project will create a five-mile-long area of fuel breaks to protect the southern flank of the Salida and Poncha Springs communities from a wildfire. Forest treatments will encompass 1,500 acres on both public and private lands.
The Methodist Front project could be enhanced by a 2,500-acre wildlife habitat project under consideration by the U.S. Forest Service. The agency is currently accepting comments on the plan. Also, a new service called Chaffee Chips will be offered to Methodist Mountain landowners this year and next to encourage additional work in the wildland-urban interface through coordinated neighborhood slash removal and chipping services.
