September is delivering some welcome moisture, but the Montezuma County commissioners have decided to keep the burn ban in place for a little longer.
September’s rains come after a summer that was long, hot, and dry.
Local weather expert James Andrus says most of the month of August was arid until a monsoon storm added a little over a half-inch of rain on August 31. That brought August’s precipitation total up to just 63 percent of the historic average.
“The August monsoon could be relabeled as a ‘Non-soon’ or a Mon-swoon,” Andrus wrote in an email.
The year-to-date precipitation average through Aug. 31 was just 77 percent of the historic average, Andrus said. The hot temperatures exacerbated the loss of moisture. Cortez hit 102 degrees on Aug. 9, tying its all-time record high.
At their workshop Monday, the commissioners and Sheriff Steve Nowlin discussed whether to remove the current prohibition against burns in the unincorporated areas of the county.
Nowlin said officials with the Cortez and Pleasant View fire departments were not eager to see the ban lifted because the western half of the county remains fairly dry. He said he can grant burn-ban exemption permits on rare occasions for places such as RV parks that have controlled sites and plenty of water.
“It’s really up to you guys,” he told the commissioners.
Commissioner Kent Lindsay said it takes longer for piñon-juniper forests to recover from extended droughts than the forests to the north, where the San Juan National Forest has removed its burn ban.
While the ban is in place, the county landfill has been accepting green waste such as branches for free. Lindsay said it is receiving a record amount of such material.
“I think we’re still a little bit premature,” Commission Chair Jim Candelaria said. He added, “Let’s have this conversation again at Halloween.”
The other commissioners agreed.
