Sheep Graze Outside Carson City To Reduce Fire Risk

(AP) — Sheep have returned to the hills on Carson City's west side in an effort to reduce fire risk in the area.

The Nevada Appeal reports that about 800 ewes with 1,100 lambs will spend four to six weeks eating cheatgrass, a highly flammable weed that grows in the area.

The sheep have been coming to Carson City each spring since 2006 as a cost-effective way to reduce fuel for fires.

U.S. Forest Service Fuels Forester Annabelle Monti says the sheep don't cost any money because the work is equally beneficial for Borda Land & Sheep Co. as it is for Carson City.

The sheep will graze on about 2,000 acres of land that will be a mix of private, city, USFS and Nevada Division of State Lands property.