Upper Poudre River Watershed Projects
Photo by Cory Dick
Summary of Work
2011 - Present
In an effort to protect Colorado’s only Wild & Scenic designated River, the Cache La Poudre, JW Associates (JWA) embarked on various projects over the past 10 years. Due in part to three large wildfires that have dramatically impacted this region, along with the importance of the Poudre River Watershed as a freshwater resource for the Front Range, JWA has supported a holistic approach to hazard assessment, pre-and post-fire mitigation and planning, as well as restoration treatments in the Upper Cache la Poudre Watershed.
In collaboration with the Coalition for the Poudre River Watershed, City of Greeley, City of Fort Collins, USFS and various other organizations, JWA executed 6 individual projects. The focus of work of these projects are explained below:
Connections between Projects
With the health of the entire Poudre River Watershed in mind, the 6 individual projects have been a collaborative process in order to gain awareness of the current state of the watershed, execute restoration projects, and prevent future hazards.
Beginning in 2011, JWA started their first project in the Upper Poudre River Watershed. The ever evolving state of the watershed has changed since 2011, with two of Colorado’s largest fires impacting the surrounding area and river. The initial watershed wildfire assessment done in 2011 predicted much of the post-wildfire hazards that occurred after the Hewlett Gulch and High Park fires of 2012. After these fires, JWA assisted various organizations in post-fire mitigation that helped protect the watershed from post-wildfire hazards such as flooding, debris flows, and water quality issues. In 2015, JWA collaborated with Coalition for the Poudre River Watershed to make a recovery and resilience plan. This was implemented in 2015 and has been an on-going process since then.
After the Cameron Peak Fire of 2020, JWA spearheaded post-fire mitigation work. This work aimed to prevent post-fire hazards such as flooding and debris flow through primarily aerial mulching treatments. JWA is now embarking on a new version of the Upper Poudre River Recovery & Resilience plan to include the Cameron Peak Fire’s impact on the watershed. This landscape is ever-evolving, and so is the work being done to protect and restore the watershed. Because of this, the process of work that JWA has done (mostly in collaboration with Coalition for the Poudre River Watershed) is a dynamic process.
Chambers Lake Reservoir. Photo by Cory Dick
