DENVER — Smoke from a prescribed burn in Colorado's mountains has arrived on the Front Range.
Despite the smoky smell, air quality levels were good across the Denver area as of Wednesday morning.
The United States Forest Service (USFS) began a prescribed burn Tuesday south of Lake George, about five miles west of Trout Creek Pass. It is likely that the smoke from the burn is being trapped in by an inversion along the Front Range.
An inversion is a lid of warmer air above the surface that keeps air from rising or escaping. In other words, it traps in pollutants and smoke. The inversion should dissipate during the early afternoon on Wednesday, likely leading to a gradual reduction in the smoke smell.
Located near the Park and Teller County line, the prescribed burn will be patrolled and will likely take several days.
Park County officials said that while smoke will be visible, please do not report it to authorities.
Public health impacts are not expected because the concentrations of smoke will be light to moderate, according to the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE).
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