Fire chiefs from across the Grand Valley continued the public process of their efficiency study this evening. The latest public meeting was held in Palisade Tuesday but it garnered no public interest.

The work started last month when Mesa County fire chiefs came together to announce this study was underway. It's a plan designed to measure how effective local fire departments are in covering everything from Fruita to Palisade and down to Gateway.

Officials say the findings of this study could mean changes in some of the services available.

"We'll be asking things like 'Could we put in a joint station, an operating station, together that may be on the borderline of a couple different fire districts,'" Grand Junction Fire Chief Ken Watkins explained. "Leading all the way up to the consideration of 'Should we be a consolidated fire authority?"

To accomplish the goals set for this study, officials say public involvement is necessary. So far, only a few members of the public have shown up at the two meetings on the study.

Two more are slated, including on where a final presentation will be made.

To learn about the study, you can attend the next public meeting schedule for Tuesday, August 21 from 7:00 pm to 9:00 pm at the Clifton Fire Department. The final presentation will be made on Tuesday, September 18 from 7:00 pm to 9:00 pm at Grand Junction City Hall.

Both are free to attend.

You can also voice your opinion online by visiting Mesa County's survey website. The survey closes on August 9.