BOULDER, Colo. (KDVR) — A new crowd has arrived in Boulder — but they aren’t here to stay. More than 100 cows are now grazing on open space near the Dakota Ridge neighborhood as part of a wildfire mitigation project led by the city.

The Boulder Fire Rescue Department is using the herd to reduce wildfire fuel by allowing the cattle to eat down grass that poses a fire risk. And it's a welcome sight for neighbors.

"The whole side of the mountain caught on fire and they were trying to evacuate everybody," said Denise Maslanka, a longtime Boulder resident, recalling a 2002 wildfire near her home.

After watching those flames, she's prepared to leave at a moment's notice.

"Living on the open space is really awesome," Maslanka said. "But being so close to combustible materials is a little conc

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