Please do your part to prevent range fires in Summer 2019

In the summer of 2019, it appears that we may have a chance to have a smaller wildfire season. My, that sure would be good news for our forests and rangelands.

But are you ready to do your part?

In most parts of Idaho, we had above-normal snowpack and a very wet, cool spring. You might have noticed how green our rangelands look right now, even at lower elevations, and how tall and lush the vegetation has grown.

But when temperatures heat up in July, things will dry out, and our rangelands, which comprise more than half of the land surface area of Idaho, will be vulnerable to wildfires. Cheatgrass becomes a highly flammable fuel this time of year.

We want to remind Idahoans of one important fact – in any given year, typically 80-90 percent of the fires in our state are human-caused.For the full story, pick up a copy of the Mountain Home News or click on this link to subscribe to the newspaper's online edition.