Property owners that were affected by the Weber Fire are still doing a lot of work and figuring out what is the next step in that process.
A work session/meeting to help with the recovery of the property for those involved will be open to the public tonight (Aug. 9) at 6 p.m. at the Masonic Lodge, 141 E. Montezuma in Mancos.
Rebecca Samulski, a wildfire education specialist with the Southwest Colorado FireWise Council, will help provide information to residents who come to the meeting.
People just want to know what to do on their own properties, Samulski said. And these meetings are helping to coordinate their efforts.
Actually, anyone who is interested in helping out with the recovery can come to the meeting and offer their input. The attendees will work on action plans for the properties and what the next steps will be in the recovery process. They are already addressing the issue of private and public fences, and then they will look at what to do with the roads, ditches, ponds, debris removal and any other issue that needs to be addressed. More meetings will be set up as well.
The Mancos Conservancy District (MCD) and the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) have been helping out with the fire mitigation, but they havent found out if they will receive any funding for this phase of the fire recovery. The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) doesnt either, according to Samulski. But they will see that their land has been reseeded and will probably build fencing on the northwest part of the fire, she said.
But property owners are on their own financially, said Samulski. Since no structures were damaged or lost in the fire, it is a lower priority for emergency status and funding, she added.
Goals were set at prior meetings. Some of those included:
Repair and replace any fences that hold in livestock by the end of this season (before the snow);
Repair and replace any fence that was burned or destroyed by the end of next season.
The work will be done, Samulski said, by homeowners or volunteers, although not all of it can be done by volunteers. The work for this year will need to be done pretty quickly, said Samulski.
Its important, she said, that all the property owners, and anyone else who is willing to help out, work together to get these things done. One of the property owners will be contacting the others to see what they are willing to do.
This is just the beginning, Samulski said. These meetings just assess what level of interest there is. And, at some point, they (the property owners) will do this on their own.
The other issues that will need to be addressed are:
Debris removal around the area, such as rocks and logs;
Siltation of ponds;
Roads keeping them clear and replacing the culverts that were damaged;
Concerns about erosion and beautification;
Irrigation ditches and keeping them clear of debris and mud.
Samulski said that even though there may not be a lot of funds available right now, there is plenty of technical support for anyone who is interested.
These meetings, and working together, helps everyone to go from the government should be helping me to how can we help each other and how can the community help?, said Samulski.
This should be an opportunity for anyone to help, she said.
For more information or to find out how you can help, call 564-4007 or email [email protected].
