On Jan. 18, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack and Forest Service Chief Randy Moore announced the launch of a new 10-year strategy to confront the wildfire crisis. The National Wild Turkey Federation (NWTF)—an RMRI co-convener with the U.S. Forest Service—pledged their support for the strategy. At the state level, DNR has rolled out the Colorado Strategic Wildfire Action Program (COSWAP), Conor Hall will take over as the new Outdoor Recreation Industry Office (OREC) Director and Matthew McCombs is the new Colorado State Forester. The RMRI Leadership Team meeting has been rescheduled for Feb. 9, 1-4 p.m. via Zoom and Colorado state legislature introduces new bills potentially impacting RMRI values.
|
|
RMRI Partners increase the pace and scale of restoration work on these three large landscapes across Colorado: RMRI-Southwest, RMRI-Upper Arkansas and RMRI-Upper South Platte. This is their work.
__________________
RMRI reschedules Leadership Team meeting RMRI
The RMRI Leadership Team meeting originally scheduled for Jan. 26 has been rescheduled to Wednesday, Feb. 9, from 1-4 p.m. This meeting will focus on accomplishments from the three RMRI landscapes. RMRI Partners can expect to receive an email. If not, request to join the meeting at restoretherockies@gmail.com. As a reminder, participation in Leadership Team meetings is limited to Leadership Team members. Past Leadership Team meeting minutes and meeting summaries are available at https://restoringtherockies.org/meeting-summaries.
__________________
RMRI-SW Steering Committee presents 2021 accomplishments RMRI-SW
The RMRI-Southwest Steering Committee presented on the RMRI-SW’s 2021 accomplishments to its Advisory Network and interested stakeholders. RMRI-SW Partners completed 53 projects on federal lands across 12,685 acres. They brought $4.2 million in funding toward federal lands. Partners completed 37 projects totaling 2,317 acres on state, private, and tribal lands, benefitting over 333 private landowners. Partners brought over $3 million of investment to the table. Video recording…
__________________
Colorado State Forest Service (CSFS)
The Colorado State Forest Service has hired Matthew McCombs to serve as the new Colorado State Forester. He came on as the state forester Jan. 3. More…
__________________
Colorado Department of Natural Resources (DNR)
DNR has rolled out the Colorado Strategic Wildfire Action Program (COSWAP) created by Colorado Senate Bill 258. The program expands opportunities for managers to work with the Colorado Youth Corps Association (CYCA) and the Department of Corrections State Wildland Inmate Fire Team (SWIFT) crews. It will also provide funding for fuel treatment projects. The program has identified strategic focus areas: the three RMRI priority landscapes and six counties.
DNR has launched the new Colorado Forest Health Council. Colorado Forest Health Council meetings will be open and virtual for the time being. The Colorado Forest Health Council will provide guidance to the governor and legislators to help address forest health issues.
Over the past two years, state partners have worked with the USFS Region 2 to develop shared goals under the Shared Stewardship Memorandum of Understanding (MOU). They have pulled together key planning staff and will release their plan in the spring. The plan will outline how those partners will work together collaboratively over the next ten years. More on Shared Stewardship in Colorado here.
__________________
Colorado Outdoor Recreation Industry Office (OREC)
The Colorado Office of Economic Development and International Trade (OEDIT) named Conor Hall as the new Outdoor Recreation Industry Office (OREC) Director. Hall, who grew up in Crestone, Colorado, and spent his summers on a cattle ranch, comes to OREC from The Trust for Public Land, where he was the director of conservation strategies, policy, advocacy and government relations for the Intermountain West. More…
OREC also joins the United Nations in the Global Mountain Partnership. The Mountain Partnership is a voluntary alliance of government agencies, nonprofit organizations, and for-profit businesses committed to working together with the common goal of achieving sustainable mountain development around the world. On Dec. 16, 2021, Colorado became the first U.S. state to join the Mountain Partnership. More…
__________________
Colorado Water Conservation Board (CWCB)
The Colorado Water Conservation Board has distributed over $22 million through their Watershed Restoration Program for post-fire recovery projects in the Cameron Peak, Grizzly Peak, and Calwood Fire burn scars. Additionally, CWCB is working with partners to update the Colorado Water Plan. The basin implementation plans (BIPs) were out for public review, and the commenting period closed on November 15. CWCB is sorting through the feedback they received on the BIPs. Also, CWCB will be hosting many workshops in the summer of 2022 focused on forest and watershed health.
__________________
Colorado Youth Corps Association (CYCA)
Colorado Youth Corps Association is allocating more resources to workforce development in 2022. CYCA will be hiring new corps members to implement more work in 2022. Additionally, CYCA developed a ‘How-To Guide for Pursuing a Career in Natural Resources,’ which is available for download here.
__________________
Colorado Outdoor Recreation Industry Office
The US Economic Development Administration (EDA) awarded $9 million to Colorado to support outdoor and recreation tourism. If partners have projects that fit this category, they should reach out to Samantha Albert (samantha.albert@state.co.us) for more.
__________________
National Wild Turkey Federation (NWTF)
At the state level, NWTF continues to work with policymakers to ensure state legislation mentions the importance of work occurring in the wildland-urban interface and upstream areas. NWTF is also participating in the USFS's Wildfire Risk Reduction Team at the national level, which is determining how to roll out the bipartisan infrastructure bill. As more funding is allocated for forest management projects, it is important to consider how and where it will be applied. NWTF staff will be meeting with U.S. Forest Service Chief Randy Moore to talk about Shared Stewardship at the national level and RMRI as an example of Shared Stewardship.
Additionally, NWTF officially pledged its support for the USDA Forest Service’s new 10-year strategy to confront wildfire crisis, announced Jan. 18 by USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack. NWTF “will continue to collaborate and bolster its shared stewardship model of conservation with the federal agency, ensuring the nation’s forests are safe, resilient and continue to benefit Americans and their natural resources.” More…
__________________
The Nature Conservancy (TNC)
TNC has managed funding under the National Cohesive Strategy Program for the past six years. The National Cohesive Wildland Fire Management Strategy emphasizes three goals: resilient landscapes, fire-adapted communities, and safe and effective wildfire response. Through the funding granted by the National Cohesive Strategy Program, TNC has implemented projects with Jefferson Conservation District, Denver Mountain Parks, Colorado State Forest Service, and the Coalition for the Upper South Platte within the Upper South Platte geography. Many great outcomes came from the funding, including mechanical thinning projects, home assessments, and treatment monitoring.
__________________
U.S. Forest Service
|
|
USDA forester details Colorado's role in federal wildfire fight
On Jan. 18, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack and Forest Service Chief Randy Moore announced the new 10-year strategy to confront the wildfire crisis. Frank Beum, a regional forester for the Rocky Mountain Region of the USDA Forest Service, explained how the plan will unfold in Colorado. "Right now, we're looking at the Front Range of Colorado as one of the four areas initially under the 10 year, wildfire crisis strategy that we'll focus on because it has one of the highest concentrations of high risk fire sheds within the nation," Beum said.
__________________
USDA to invest up to $225 Million in partner-driven conservation on agricultural and forest lands
The U.S. Department of Agriculture today announced up to $225 million in available funding for conservation partners through the Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP). RCPP is a partner-driven program that leverages collective resources to find solutions to address natural resource challenges on agricultural land. This year’s funding announcements include opportunities for projects that address climate change, benefit historically underserved producers and support urban agriculture. More…
__________________
Conservation partners target 300,000 acres in Southwest Colorado
Since its inception in 2019, the Southwest region of the Rocky Mountain Restoration Initiative has partnered wildlife conservation with wildfire mitigation, creating a unique model for how public land agencies, conservation groups and other stakeholders collaborate to restore forests and protect wildlife and vulnerable communities. More…
__________________
San Juan Mountains a laboratory for the study of avalanches
San Juan Mountains Association works in cooperation with federal public lands, explains Alex Smith of San Juan Mountains Association—an #RMRIpartner. But SJMA is also showing residents and visitors how to recreate responsibly in the snow. More…
|
|
Social License & Communications Subcommittees
Both Social License and the Communications Subcommittees met Dec. 6. The Communications Subcommittee is in the process of updating their work plan and efforts. There are several upcoming opportunities that the Communication Subcommittee wants to take advantage of. The infrastructure bill is an opportunity for the Communications Subcommittee to show how funding is being used locally to accomplish the RMRI mission and better position partners to receive funding. To do this, the Communications Subcommittee is reevaluating how they tell the RMRI story. More…
|
|
Jan. 24: RMRI Workforce Capacity Subcommittee Meeting
__________________
Feb. 1: Up Your Wildfire Resilience (webinar)
Water Education Colorado hosts a webinar Feb. 1, from 1-2:15 p.m., about new funding opportunities to build more wildfire-ready watersheds and communities. The webinar also covers the Department of Natural Resources’ (DNR) Colorado Strategic Wildfire Action Program (COSWAP). DNR is an RMRI Partner. More…
__________________
Feb. 7: RMRI Social License Subcommittee Meeting
__________________
Feb. 9: RMRI Leadership Team Meeting
The RMRI Leadership Team meeting originally scheduled for Jan. 26 has been rescheduled to Wednesday, Feb. 9, from 1-4 p.m. This meeting will focus on accomplishments from the three RMRI landscapes. RMRI Partners can expect to receive an email. If not, request to join the meeting at restoretherockies@gmail.com. As a reminder, participation in Leadership Team meetings is limited to Leadership Team members. Past Leadership Team meeting minutes and meeting summaries are available at https://restoringtherockies.org/meeting-summaries.
__________________
March 7-10: Cross-Boundary Landscape Restoration Workshop
All-lands forest and fire management in Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, and surrounding states hosted at Colorado State University. More…
|
|
Colorado's 2022 legislative session began Jan. 12 and runs through early May 11, 2022. Here are a number of bills proposed that may be of interest to Colorado's land and natural resource managers.
Concerning outreach to the public relating to wildfire risk mitigation practices.
Concerning prohibitions against taking certain actions that may negatively affect certain native normally wild animals in the subfamily felinae.
Concerning healthy forests, and, in connection therewith, creating the wildfire mitigation and recovery grant program.
Concerning the expansion of the water resources review committee to the water resources and agriculture review committee.
Concerning the creation of the groundwater compact compliance and sustainability fund.
Concerning water speculation in the state.
|
|
SUBMISSIONS, QUESTIONS & FEEDBACK |
|
If you would like your work highlighted in this monthly email update, submit to RMRI communication manager, Nathan Van Schaik, at nathaniel.vanschaik@usda.gov. Or, to discuss any communications issues or concerns, contact Nathan via email or at (720) 584-6571.
|
|
Rocky Mountain Restoration Initiative
#RestoreTheRockies
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
