Forest Fire Recovery Project by U.S. Forest Service

Post-fire Rehabilitation

Forest fires, whether caused by Mother Nature, an accident, or at the hand of an arsonist, wreak havoc on the U.S. Forests, land-owners, homeowners and the wildlife that reside in these areas.  Not only does the fire danger affect these residents both emotionally and financially, bare soils left by the flames of destruction are at great risk for erosion.

Post-fire rehabilitation by the U.S. Forest Service is a major undertaking.  Rain for Rent has been an active participant in post-burn rehabilitation projects in Colorado, New Mexico and California.  When aerial methods are employed for spreading mulch and seed in remote areas, Rain for Rent provides the water expertise and equipment for these projects.

Rain for Rent’s Denver and Trinidad, Colorado branches assisted the U.S. Forest Service in Hayman, Colorado and Taos, New Mexico with their post-fire rehabilitation projects.

The process included utilizing Power Prime™ pumps to pump a mixture of grass seed, polymer, mulch and water directly into an Erickson Sky Crane helicopter.  21,000-gallon steel tanks were used for storing water before it was added to the mulch and a round holding tank was set up close to the landing pad where the mixture was kept in suspension. 

In the Hayman Fire, a Power Prime™ DV-200 8-inch pump pumped the mixture directly into the sky crane helicopter and re-circulated the mulch back into the holding tank between take off and landing.  The Sky Crane helicopter carried the water mixture to the rehabilitation site, spreading it over the scorched terrain where the seeds could take hold and prevent soil erosion.  The helicopter returned every three minutes for another load.