DOWNRANGE AT FORT CARSON
Fort Carson is bounded on the east by Interstate 25 and on the west by Colorado Highway 115. The fort extends from the main post, which is just south of Academy Boulevard, to its southern perimeter, which lies just north of the communities of Pueblo West and Penrose.

All tolled, Fort Carson consists of 137,403 acres including the cantonment area (main post) and training areas downrange. The training areas include a wide variety of different vegetation types. There are open prairies and heavily forested areas. There are lowlands, wetlands and creek drainages as well as mountainous and hilly areas.

Fort Carson can accommodate a wide variety of training including extensive maneuver training (both mounted and dismounted), airborne training and weapons training. Weapons training can include small arms qualification and tank, artillery and helicopter gunnery. There are two impact areas at Fort Carson — a small impact area (in the north) for small arms; and a large impact area (in the south), which supports artillery, tank, Bradley and other gunnery ranges.

The large impact area can support mortar firing, cannon artillery and even Multiple Launched Rocket System firing. Tank and Bradley gunnery is typically conducted at Range 109 complex for the preliminary tables and the Multi-Purpose Range Complex for qualification gunnery and advanced firing tables.

There are 58 training areas and 78 ranges located at Fort Carson, which can support a variety of training. Consult Fort Carson Regulation 385-63 for a complete listing of ranges, training areas and other facilities. Range Control, located in Bldg. 9550 at the intersection of Butts Field Road and Route 2, can provide complete information on training areas and range use. Call Range Control at 526-5597. Environmental stewardship of Fort Carson's natural resources is vitally important. The Environmental Division, Directorate of Public Works oversees the environmental management of Fort Carson's training areas and conducts unit instruction and maneuver damage prevention.

The Environmental Division also has a hazardous waste reaction team that is employed if an environmental emergency arises. Fort Carson Fire Department is the first responder for environmental emergencies. For more information regarding environmental protection of Fort Carson resources, call 526-2022/4907. Facilities at the training site include a railhead, showers, range control facility, helipad, BAAF, dirt runway, and a small shoppette.

PIÑON CANYON MANEUVER SITE
In 1983, Fort Carson acquired 235,800 acres of training land on the west side of the Purgatoire River in southeast Colorado. Called the Piñon Canyon Maneuver Site (PCMS), the PCMS is the primary maneuver area for Fort Carson, located about 150 miles to the southeast.

PCMS can accommodate a full range of maneuver training, including brigade-level, force-on-force maneuvers. Live-fire training is restricted at PCMS to 50 CAL and below at established firing ranges.

PCMS also provides excellent dismounted maneuver terrain in the rugged canyons and arroyos that empty into the nearby Purgatoire River.

Units have been training at PCMS since 1985, and major training rotations typically have taken place there as units prepare for the National Training Center at Fort Irwin, Calif. As is the case at Fort Carson, environmental stewardship of the natural resources at PCMS is tremendously important. All Soldiers and units must undergo environmental training prior to using PCMS.

The environmental management of PCMS remains unique within the Department of Defense in many respects and remains the primary responsibility of a senior member of the Garrison Management Team. This internationally recognized Management Program provides for the continuing balance between military training requirements and resource protection. PCMS has more than 6,500 archeological or cultural sites, many of which must be protected by federal statute.

PCMS resource protection program is divided into six primary areas: the study and protection of wildlife; plant and soil conservation; water quality; the impact of training on cultural and archeological resources; and the effect of sound in the environment.

PCMS provides Fort Carson Soldiers and units a unique training resource. The semi-arid, high desert climate allows for year-round training, and wide-open spaces allow battalions and brigades to deploy using current doctrinal distances. Units typically transport heavy equipment (tanks and other armored vehicles) by rail to PCMS and conduct convoys with wheeled vehicles. PCMS can also support a full range of aviation training requirements. For more information regarding environmental protection of PCMS resources, call 524-0123.

Facilities at the training site includes an austere cantonment area, a 160 DODX car capable railhead, showers, range control facility, helipads, C-130 capable Combat Assault Air Strip and a small shopette.