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DNR, CWCB and State Forest Service outline wildfire mitigation and watershed projects, highlight funding gaps
Summary
Department of Natural Resources, Colorado State Forest Service and CWCB presented statewide susceptibility analysis, grant programs (FIRWIRM, CoSwap) and project highlights including Catamount Reservoirs and the Michigan Ditch; speakers stressed coordinated funding and multi-agency implementation.
State natural-resources officials told the Water Resources and Agriculture Review Committee that strategic forest treatments and watershed-focused restoration are essential to protect Colorado's water infrastructure from wildfire and post-fire flooding.
Lisonbee Lerch, assistant director for forest health and wildfire mitigation at the Colorado Department of Natural Resources, opened the panel by linking forest health to water security and noting Colorado's active wildfire season. "Forest and watershed health are two pillars of work that the DNR focuses on," Lerch said.
Wes Stoll of the Colorado State Forest Service described the state's varied forest types and ongoing insect outbreaks that have increased fuel loads, citing a rise in western spruce budworm and mountain…
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