July 8, 2016 –\u00a0After about 18,000 acres burned in the Manzano Mountains, some are concerned about future\u00a0wildfires this season.<\/p>\n
U.S. Forest Service officials said that the \u00a0Dog Head Fire<\/a>\u00a0was started when a machine used to clear up the forest floor backfired, \u00a0igniting mulch on the ground.<\/p>\n \u201cIn operation, the masticator moves across the forest floor and grinds the slash into a mulch. There is no fire hazard posed by normal operations of this machine, but in this case it may have struck a rock or some other solid object in the slash that sparked the blaze,\u201d Isleta Pueblo Governor, E. Paul Torres, told KRQE in a statement.<\/a><\/p>\n http:\/\/krqe.com\/2016\/06\/30\/dog-head-fire-early-investigation-findings-to-be-released\/<\/p>\n The fire was driven by high winds and dry atmospheric conditions.\u00a0The cost of fighting such fires is also a source of\u00a0disagreement<\/a> between Congress and the U.S. Forest Service.<\/p>\n Do you think forest clearing is a good strategy right now? Who should pay for wildfire fighting and prevention? \u00a0Let us know what you think on Facebook<\/a> and Twitter<\/a>.<\/p>\n