By Christopher Smart
The Salt Lake Tribune
Copyright 2007 The Salt Lake Tribune
All Rights Reserved
SALT LAKE CITY — Wildfires require two things: dry fuel and a spark.
Utah has an overabundance of the first, and fire officials are nervously awaiting the second.
It could come from lightning, a cigarette or even a flat-tire rim slapping the pavement and causing a spark. And this fire season holds the promise to be one characterized by big blazes.
“The stage is set” said Mike Melton, state fire manager for Beaver, Iron, Garfield, Kane and Washington counties, as he contemplates the summer season ahead. “It’s just a matter of ignition.”
From one end of the state to the other, wildland firefighters worry that heavy fuels - pine, fir, juniper and pinyon - have been weakened by drought and beetle infestation and are ready to fuel an inferno.
“The drought has put fuels at a critical point, and the beetles have created a big mess for us,” Melton said. “I’m worried. The whole area will be prone to wildfire.”
Wildland fires typically start in light fuels - grasses - explained Jim Springer, spokesman for the state Division of Forestry, Fire and State Lands. A wind-driven grass fire spreads to heavier fuels, like brush, and, if conditions allow, ignite timber.
Cheat grass is the light-fuel culprit that has spread like the bad weed it is throughout the western United States. Green
by early April, cheat grass is dry and brown by late June and ready to burn, Springer said. It ignites easily when temperatures climb into the ‘90s.
Chuck full of cheat and hot in the summer, Utah’s desert areas are often burned over.
But this year, timber, even at high elevations, is “seeing low moisture levels” and forest areas are ripe with “bug-killed trees,” Springer said.
“It’s a recipe for increased fire hazard.”
Where exactly will wildfire ignite?
“Who knows?” said Heather O’Hanlon, BLM fire mitigation officer for Carbon, Emery, Grand and San Juan counties. “We’re seven to eight years into this drought, and the whole district looks rather stressed,” she said.
A lot depends on the thunderstorms that sweep through Utah throughout the summer season, O’Hanlon explained.
Since about 70 percent of wildfires are ignited by lightning, the amount of dry lightning may determine the severity of the fire season. The remainder are human caused.
On the other hand, if Utah gets a relatively wet summer thunderstorm season, it could mean fewer-than-anticipated fires, said Fred Johnson, state fire manager for Juab, Sanpete, Millard, Sevier, Piute and Wayne counties.
It all makes predicting the severity of a fire season something like guesswork.
“We’re in for a busy season,” he said. “But I hesitate to raise a red flag. Sometimes we don’t get the ignition. And if we get some moisture, that will make a big difference. Often, the fire season is weather dependent.”