Taos County Wildfire Plaza is a place for people to share news, information and resources related to forest and watershed restoration and wildfire risk reduction. Our mission is to improve ecosystem health, encourage traditional and cultural practices, and support economic development in rural New Mexico through planning and projects.
Forests and watersheds in northern New Mexico need some love.
The people of Taos County are working together to help.
Featured Work
Fire History in McGaffey Ridge
Researchers recently completed a fire history study in the McGaffey Ridge area just south of Pot Creek. Using evidence from ancient fire-scarred tree stumps, these scientists identified 22 low-severity fires that burned between 1612 and 1896. This kind of data is useful for land managers like the U.S. Forest Service and its partners, which are preparing landscape-scale restoration activities in this watershed in the coming years.
Building Careers in Natural Resources
The Taos Soil and Water Conservation District has been hiring student monitoring crews to collect data on thinning and restoration projects across Taos County. The program is designed to introduce young people to careers in the natural resource field, and show them how to become the next generation of land stewards. To read a report prepared as part of these program, click here.
Value-added restoration wood
A recently completed feasibility study and business plan took a close look at whether it was possible to establish a wood lot specifically aimed at adding value to wood cut during restoration projects. The studies assessed whether such a business could be profitable, and if so, how much it might help meet the local demand for firewood while also boosting the pace and scale of restoration and wildfire risk reduction in north-central New Mexico.
Making Some Defensible Space in Southern Taos County
Taos County is providing targeted outreach to private landowners along NM 518 from Vadito to Angostura offering support and other resources to organize their communities and find funding for planning and implementing thinning work to reduce the risk of wildfire in that area. Programs managed by Taos County, Taos Soil and Water Conservation District and New Mexico State Forestry can help property owners understand the steps they can take to practice “wildfire self-defense.”
Written in the rings
Researchers are using tree ring data and fire scars to reconstruct centuries of wildfire history in the Taos Valley. By understanding the frequency and intensity of fire in the past, land managers hope to design restoration projects that improve the resiliency of forested ecosystems.
The video at left describes how scientists collect and use this data. And click here to read the full study.
Ancient customs, modern solutions
Villages across Taos County are testing an innovative model of community forestry that empowers residents to manage stewardship of the forests in their own backyards, reducing the threat posed by wildfire while building micro forestry economies.
