Fighting fire with prevention: City project works to ensure the health, safety of the bosque

For an approximately five-month period, the city of Albuquerque Parks and Recreation Department (PRD) will be working diligently to ensure the health and safety of the Rio Grande bosque.

Beginning this past December and continuing through April, crews will be doing what is known as routine winter work in an area that includes “the east and west sides of the Rio Grande, from just north of Central to Bridge Boulevard/Cesar Chavez,” according to a press release. By removing non-native plant species, thinning vegetation and removing downed wood, the project will help to significantly reduce wildfire risk in the bosque.

While some of this type of work is typically done each year, the focus has intensified over the past two decades due to the prevalence of wildfires.

“The Open Space Division (OSD) is responsible for managing over 4,000 acres of the Rio Grande bosque, the largest riparian cottonwood forest in the world,” said Colleen McRoberts, superintendent for the city of Albuquerque’s OSD. “The city of Albuquerque does restoration and fire risk reduction work consistently in the bosque, mostly during winter because that avoids the bird nesting and breeding season.

“Some work and/or projects are done almost every year, but the level of work has increased since 2002, when catastrophic bosque fires occurred,” she added. “This larger project complements regular maintenance work in the bosque. Follow-up treatments and replanting will continue in this area throughout 2024 and on an annual basis.”

Fighting fire with prevention: City project works to ensure the health, safety of the bosque

The current thinning project was enabled by a $1 million grant awarded to OSD and Albuquerque Fire Rescue by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) in 2019.

“The overall project area is 470 acres, though OSD is only treating high-priority areas thickly vegetated with concentrations of invasive species and anticipates that the actual area that will be directly treated will be only about 40% of the total project area,” McRoberts said. “This is the area where wildland fires have the most occurrences within the bosque. In fact, since the grant was awarded, the number of fire incidents that AFR has responded to in this area has actually more than doubled — from 86 incidents in 2019 to 235 in 2023.”

In addition to the Open Space Division and Albuquerque Fire Rescue, the project is also supported by the Ciudad Soil & Water Conservation District and the New Mexico Forestry Division.

“The crews have all been trained and are following federally approved protocols,” McRoberts said. “This involves dozens of forestry workers hand-cutting trees with chainsaws and small equipment to chip and move the fuel wood out of the bosque.”

Some of the non-native, invasive species that are targeted for removal include Siberian elm, Russian olive, salt cedar and tree of heaven. These, according to McRoberts, “grow quickly and establish dense colonies, which can contribute to hotter and more intense fires in the forest.”

While wildfire prevention is the primary objective of the winter work, thinning vegetation is also beneficial because it allows for easier access and visibility for emergency response.

Youth crews can also gain valuable hands-on experience once planting and reseeding efforts commence.

Those who frequent the bosque during this time may encounter trail closures where the work is taking place. At this time there will be crews using chainsaws and other equipment hauling trees and other wood material away from the site. Visitors can stay updated on closures by visiting the Open Space website (cabq.gov/parksandrecreation/open-space).

Ultimately, that small inconvenience of these closures may cause will be worth the wait.

“Reducing the risk of a catastrophic wildfire helps preserve this unique ecosystem for wildlife and people. Hikers, bicyclists, birders and photographers can continue to visit the bosque for recreation and the simple enjoyment of being outdoors,” McRoberts said. “Reducing the dense growth of invasive vegetation will open up opportunities for a diversity of native plants to return to the bosque and improve habitat for pollinators, birds, reptiles, amphibians and small mammal populations.”