FOREST PROJECTS

Our forest projects aim to restore forest health, reduce wildfire risk, and contribute to landscape-scale restoration by focusing on projects that maximize ecological resilience across the watershed. We work with private landowners and neighborhoods to effectively put restoration practices onto the ground in a way that aligns with state and federal standards.

If you’re interested in learning more or participating in a forest project, reach out!

PROJECTS IN THE WORKS

Arapaho Ranch

**Status:** Complete
**Project Description:** The headwaters that provide the City of Boulder with water run through Arapaho Ranch just outside of Nederland. This project is nestled next to Tucker Ranch, and we are looking forward to cross-boundary collaboration with Boulder County on continuing to steward this critical landscape.

Arkansas Mountain

**Status:** Complete
**Project Description:** 100+ acres owned by 10 landowners. We are creating mountain meadows, strengthening the WUI, and tying into work by Boulder County at Betasso and Fourmile fire.

Copperdale

**Status:** Complete
**Project Description:** A neighborhood-scale project to reduce bulk fuel density. This project was initiated by the neighborhood getting together in the interest of a cohesive fuel break. BWC worked with BVLCD to develop and implement a “backyard” forest health project.

Crescent Lake / Vonnie Claire

**Status:** Planning
**Project Description:** Crescent Lake / Vonnie Claire is a large neighborhood-wide fuels reduction project focusing on improving ingress/egress routes in the Vonnie Claire Plan Unit of the Coal Creek Canyon CWPP.

CR 99

**Status:** Complete
**Project Description:** The County Road 99 project was a collaborative effort between BWC and CSFS. It was a 56-acre fuels reduction project that involved creating shaded fuelbreaks along ingress/egress routes in the CR-99/North Beaver Rd community, creating defensible space around 22 homesites, and implementing selective thinning and patch cuts in larger forested areas. The project links to Boulder County mitigation work at Reynolds Ranch.

**Gold Hill - Phase 1**

**Status:** Complete
**Project Description:** This project included 100 acres of strategic forest thinning on 3 private properties to create a fuel buffer along the north and west edges of Gold Hill.

**Gold Hill - Phase 2**

**Status:** Active
**Project Description:** Phase 2 of the Gold Hill Project involves elevating forest health and resilience to fire on the east and southwest sides of town via defensible space + large-scale selective thinning. The east project was completed Winter 2024: a shaded fuel break was incorporated along East St. in Gold Hill, and defensible space around 6 private properties along East St. The southwest project involves 18 acres of selective thinning on a large private parcel southwest of downtown and will be complete Spring 2026.

Los Lagos

**Status:** Active
**Project Description:** The Los Lagos project is a collaborative project between CSFS and BWC. This project stitches together larger strategic landscape work by the USFS with interstitial private lands. Biomass from this project is being utilized by Charm Industrial. This project will be finished in early 2026.

Middle Boulder Creek Fuel Reduction Partnership Project

**Status:** Active
**Project Description:** This project is a joint partnership project across three sites west of the Town of Nederland: Tucker and Elk Draw, Arapahoe Ranch, and US Forest Service Area. The goal of this project is to reduce the risk of severe wildfire and support resilient and diverse forests. Visit the BoulderCounty.gov website for more information.

Read through the FAQ document here.

**Porter Ranch**

**Status:** Active
**Project Description:** This project encompasses 160 acres of mixed conifer forest held between 12 landowners, surrounded by Forest Service on three sides. This highly diverse mosaic will be mitigated in two phases: Phase 1 was completed in 2025 and consisted of thinning along the road in order to improve ingress/egress along the single road into and out of the neighborhood. Phase 2 will be the bulk mitigation project across the 12 landowners, and will decrease bulk fuel density and increase canopy heterogeneity, while maintaining privacy barriers between houses. We are happy to have had the opportunity to collaborate with Drylands Agroecology Research on creating experimental hugelkultur mounds on one parcel of this project, and Boulder Mushroom with fungal inoculation experimentation on broadcast woodchip distribution. Biomass from this project is being utilized by Charm Industrial.

Pinecliffe

**Status:** Active
**Project Description:** Pinecliffe is a collaborative project between BWC and CSFS. The project is split into two phases: Phase 1 involved creating defensible space around 40 cabins in early 2025, while Phase 2 will involve a combination of hand and mechanical treatment in the 119 acres of mixed conifer north of the cabin area in 2026-2027.

Collaborators and Funders

We acknowledge and appreciate that our project areas are on land within the territories of the Ute, Cheyenne, and Arapaho people. Further, we acknowledge that 48 contemporary tribal nations have been connected for centuries to the lands that make up the state of Colorado and many are still here today.