30
Mar

Every year thousands of wildfires range across the United States. On the news and in the social media we see numerous pictures of exhausted firefighters, destroyed structures, ruined homes, and scorched forests. It is easy to start thinking about fires as a destructive enemy. But for many centuries wildfires have been a part of natural cycle of ecosystem. In the past wildfires occurred but they did not cause significant damage. Benefits of wildfires:

• Removing dead, diseased branches, trees, bushes, and grasses
• Preparing land for new growth.
• Maintaining healthy forest condition
• Controlling insect outbreaks and diseases

It seems like with each passing year, the number of wildfires occurred continues to grow. Experts in the field offer several reasons:
1. One of the reasons is that firefighters got so good at controlling wildfires that our forests became overgrown and old which created perfect conditions for wildfires.
2. Second possible reason is that more and more people want to live close to  and in forests. Colorado State Forest defines it as wildland-urban interface. An area that is close to flammable vegetation that has high potential for wildfires.
3. A number of experts point that global warming is responsible for the increase of wildfires. Hotter summers and winters, less precipitation will leave the land drier and create perfect conditions for wildfires.

No matter what the reason for the increase of wildfires, if your home is surrounded by forest, you need to evaluate how well it is protected from wildfire. If you decide that you need to take steps to fire mitigate your property, contact us for a free estimate on brush removal and creating defensible space.