5 Colo. Code Regs. § 1001-11-VII

Current through Register Vol. 47, No. 20, October 25, 2024

Section 5 CCR 1001-11-VII - Additional Requirements for Significant Users of Prescribed Fire

A. Applicability

This Section VII applies to activities throughout the state of all significant users of prescribed fire, as defined in Section II.N of this regulation, not specifically exempted by this regulation. The Commission may exempt from the requirements of this Section VII any significant user of prescribed fire upon finding that specific activities of the user will have an insignificant impact on visibility and air quality.

B. Planning Documents.

1. Significant users of prescribed fire as a grassland or forest management tool shall submit plan's addressing the use and role of prescribed fire and the air quality impacts resulting there from.

2. Planning documents shall:

a. Specify the area to which they apply, which should be relevant to as large an organizational unit of land as is administratively reasonable;

b. Specify the time period to which they apply;

c. Be relevant to vegetative, habitat, and/or fuel management of grassland and/or forest land; and

d. Explain the decision process and criteria considered or applied to show:

i. How the significant user of prescribed fire identifies fuel treatment alternatives to achieve the fuel, habitat, and/or vegetative land management goals;

ii. How the significant user of prescribed fire selects among fuel treatment alternatives;

e. Include a discussion of the alternatives to prescribed fire considered and a discussion of how prescribed fire, if selected, minimizes the risk of wildfire; and

f. Demonstrate, for land selected for fuel treatment, how the significant user of prescribed fire considered the state standard set forth in Section VII.C and how the user will achieve compliance with that standard.

3. Planning documents may summarize the elements of other larger and more general documents.

4. Addition of land subject to planning document review

a. Significant users of prescribed fire that acquire ownership or jurisdiction over lands after a planning document is submitted shall identify the new land areas to the Division and describe how the new lands will be managed in relation to the requirements of this Section VII.

b. New lands that will be managed in the same manner as current lands in the organizational unit described in the planning document will be subject to the same restrictions on permit issuance and conditions as lands already included within the planning document. New lands that will be managed differently than lands already included within the planning document must be addressed in a separate or subsequent planning document submitted to the Commission.

5. Change in Ownership

a. If a change in majority ownership or agency jurisdiction over lands occur that are subject to this Section VII. and that have an approved planning document, the new owner(s) or authorized agency representative shall, in writing to the Division, identify the new owner(s) or agency and describe whether the new owner(s) or agency will manage the lands as per the approved planning document in relation to the requirements of this Section VII.

b. If the land will be managed in the same manner as under the previous owner(s) or management agency as described in the approved planning document, written notice to the Division is sufficient. If the land will not be managed per the approved planning document, as determined by the new owner/manager or the Division, the new owner or agency manager must address the requirements of this Section VII in a separate or subsequent planning document submitted to the Commission.

C. Compliance with the State Standard

All prescribed fire activities of significant users of prescribed fire in grassland and forest land management, including activities directly conducted by or on behalf of such users on their lands, shall conform to the state standard to minimize emissions using all available, practicable methods that are technologically feasible and economically reasonable in order to minimize the impact or reduce the potential for such impact on both the attainment and maintenance of national ambient air quality standards and achievement of federal and state visibility goals.

D. Planning Document Review Process

1. Significant users of prescribed fire shall submit to the Commission planning documents for each area in which the user intends to use prescribed fire for grassland or forest land management.

2. The Division shall review the planning documents submitted to the Commission and shall present its comments and recommendations to the Commission.

3. The Commission shall hold a public hearing to review each planning document. The Commission shall hold the hearing and complete its review of the planning document within forty-five calendar days of receipt of the document unless the significant user of prescribed fire agrees to a longer review period. Only one hearing shall be held for each planning document during the time it is considered applicable unless an additional hearing is requested by the significant user of prescribed fire for an updated or amended planning document.

4. Following the hearing and consideration of the comments and recommendations of the Division and any other information received relative to the planning document, the Commission shall comment and make recommendations to the significant user regarding any changes to the planning document relating to the discharge or release of air pollutants that the Commission finds necessary to comply with the state standard identified in Section VII.C.

E. Open Burning Permits for Significant Users of Prescribed Fire

1. The Division shall not issue any type of open burning permit to a significant user of prescribed fire or entities acting on its behalf after July 1, 2002, unless a planning document for the area to be burned has been submitted to the Commission for review, public hearing, and comment in accordance with Section VII.D.

2. The Division shall not issue a permit for open burning to a significant user of prescribed fire or entities acting on its behalf after July 1, 2002, unless the permit is consistent with the comments and recommendations made by the Commission concerning the user's planning document pursuant to Section VII.D.

a. Permit conditions imposed pursuant to this subsection may be excluded from the permit if a federal land manager asserts that the condition is specifically prohibited by federal statute and the Division determines that the assertion is correct.

b. The Division shall report all such exclusions to the Commission, the Governor and the Director of the Legislative Council within 30 days after the Division grants the exclusion.

3. The Division may grant a permit regardless of the prohibition of this subsection if it determines that issuance of the permit is necessary to protect public health and safety.

4. For the purposes of this Subsection VII.E, a permit for open burning includes permits for general open burning, planned ignition fires and unplanned ignition fires and related suppression activities, but does not include wildfire or suppression activities associated with wildfire.

5. The Division shall not issue a prescribed fire permit to a significant user of prescribed fire for areas with outdated planning documents. For the purposes of this subsection, planning documents shall be considered outdated upon expiration of the time period for which the document is applicable as stated in the document, but in no event longer than 10 years after submission of the planning document to the Commission.

5 CCR 1001-11-VII

38 CR 05, March 10, 2015, effective 3/30/2015

43 CR 12, June 25, 2020, effective 7/15/2020

47 CR 06, March 25, 2024, effective 4/15/2024