Chipper Day Program

Aspen's Free Chipping Service for Wildfire Mitigation

Chipper Day Program Signup

Aspen Fire is happy to announce that it is now offering the Chipper Day program district wide. Members that signed up with the software last year will be notified automatically. The Chipper Day program will assist us on better serving our community through promoting wildfire fuel mitigation.

• Chipping signup will begin May 1st. 
• The chipping zones will have signup quotas. So, sign up early and enter your piles in the system. 
• If a signup quote is filled, please add yourself to the wait list. To assist us on expanding the program.
• Please follow the pile making guideline below.
• If you have questions, please reach out to Shannon "Shaggy" Fink at shannon.fink@aspenfire.com.
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  Chipper Day Program Signup

Summer 2025: Chipper Day Program

The Aspen Fire Chipping Program is returning in 2025 to assist communities and homeowners in reducing wildfire risk. We can help you create defensible space by providing free chipping and disposal for brush, branches, and small (<6 in. diameter) trees. Remember, the vegetation closets to the home are the most important.

• Participants must follow the below pile and material guidelines.

Guidelines

Piles that do not follow the guidelines for both piles and materials will not be accepted. If piles are not stacked according to guidelines, homeowner will be fully responsible for proper disposal of their rejected pile(s). Unregistered piles will not be picked up.

Pile Guidelines

• Piles must be stacked with the cut ends facing the road (see photo)
• Piles must be within 5 feet of the public roadway, but not touching the road, in drainage ditches or impeding any traffic
• Maximum number of piles: 5 per property
• Maximum pile size is 5 feet high x 5 feet deep x 7 feet long
• Piles that are created using heavy machinery that are very difficult to pull apart to chip will be rejected

Material Guidelines

Accepted materials include trees, tree branches, small diameter logs and brush (cut away from root mass). 

The following restrictions apply:

• No logs or branches with a diameter greater than 6 inches
• No construction, building or other man-made materials
• No lumber, fence posts or signs
• No roots, rootwads, stumps or anything else that grows below the soil
• No materials that contain dirt, sand, gravel or rocks
• No materials that contain any metal (nails, screws, fencing), string or other man-made materials
• No herbaceous / non-woody plant material

Wood Chips

• All wood chips, resulting from the chipping of your pile(s) will be removed and composted at Pitkin County Landfill.

Vegetation Management

• Aspen Fire provides free wildfire mitigation assessments beginning in May. 
• Check our list of local Vegetation Management Contractors.
• Please note, any additional vegetation management work beyond chipping & hauling will not be financially covered by Aspen Fire.

If you have any questions please email shannon.fink@aspenfire.com. 

Thank you to Pitkin County and the City of Aspen for helping make this program possible!