Breckenridge’s wildfire-safety law rescinded – The Denver Post
Recently the homeowner’s in Breckenridge rolled back a law that is meant to protect homes, residents, and firefighters during a wildfire. This is plain stupid and ignorant.
Breckenridge and most mountain towns are having a big problem with homes moving out into the forest. But if there is a wildfire, there needs to be defensible space around that house to protect the home, homeowners, and specifically the firefighters who will be there trying to defend that space.
Well if homeowner’s don’t clear and thin the trees around their house, there will be no defensible space.
What Breckenridge was trying to do was put in an ordinance that required homeowners to do this so their would be defensible space. It was ground-breaking in Colorado.
Breckenridge is one of the mountain towns that has a lot of homes moving up into the trees. They are also having a big problem with the pine beetle, killing many of the trees that these homeowners are trying to protect.
But homeowners, many who live out-of-state, didn’t want to touch their beautiful trees. They felt the government was over-stepping their bounds. Well not me.
Their ignorance and stupidity will now lead to a state law that will say the same thing. If you are going to live in the mountains, you need to know how to live there. It is not like living in some big city somewhere.
By-the-way, this state law is long overdue. Other states have instituted defensible space laws in direct to result of wildfires.
So for now, the town is starting a voluntary clearing program.
I have another idea. I think the fire protection district should tell the residents that if they don’t provide proper defensible space than they won’t try and protect their homes.
It is a safety issue and is only fair for the fire fighters. Hopefully that will get people to do the right thing.
Mile High Soapbox 