Julie Beekman and Sam Hubert walk in City Creek Canyon in Salt Lake City on Wednesday, May 26, 2021. Utah faces increased wildfire risk as 100% of the state is in drought with 90% in extreme drought. Kristin Murphy, Deseret News
SALT LAKE CITY — This morning you may need to rethink some plans you had for the summer. Overnight Utah enacted statewide Stage 1 fire restrictions.
Stage 1 fire restrictions went into place at midnight for all public lands outside of city or town borders. That puts a tight limit on where open fires are allowed. This is a ban on all open campfires.
It also limits smoking, welding, cutting metal and other activities in any areas near dry vegetation.
And you cannot ride a motorcycle or ATV, or use a chainsaw or anything else with a small engine without an approved ‘spark arrestor.’
The order comes from the State of Utah, Department of Natural Resources, and the Division of Forestry, Fire and State Lands. They say the record low moisture and widespread drought has fire danger higher than in any year in recent memory.
The Division called on the public to adhere to the restrictions, bring awareness to them, and report any violations to local law enforcement.
Such restrictions are coming earlier than at any time in the past several years. But authorities say current conditions are more like what we would see in late summer.
This new order follows the statewide fireworks restriction issued this week for all state and unincorporated private lands.
DWR also announced no more campfires and target shooting at all 146 wildlife management areas across the state.
Alongside all of this, there’s a new federal-state campaign called “Fire Sense.” It connects fire danger to overall common sense. There’s more information at Stage 1 fire restrictions