Job Announcements for Late October

The Yampa River

The Department of Natural Resources, Colorado Parks and Wildlife announced an employment opportunity for a State Trails Program Manager position. This is an open competitive position which means residents of Colorado are welcome to apply regardless if they work for the state system or not. The position is listed as a Program Management I, but will go up to a Program Management II after training is complete. They will be taking the first 45 applications. Closing date is October 17, 2016 5:00 PM - OR - 45 applications, whichever occurs first. To apply go to, Program Management I / State Trails Program Manager.

Volunteers for Outdoor Colorado is hiring a Resource Development Manager. This position plays a critical supporting role in Volunteers for Outdoor Colorado’s overall fund development function working closely with VOC’s senior management team comprised of the Executive Director, the Director of Statewide Stewardship, and the Director of Community Relations and Strategic Partnerships. This is a salaried exempt position and reports to the Executive Director. For comprehensive information about Volunteers for Outdoor Colorado, please refer to VOC’s website at voc.org.

The City of Aurora is seeking a skilled Parks Maintenance Technician to perform skilled tree work primarily with rope and saddle on city-owned trees under the guidance of the Forestry Crew Leader. If you do not have tree climbing skills with rope and saddle, you will not be considered for this position. Link to job announcement, www.governmentjobs.com.

Yampa-White-Green Rivers Basin Round Table is seeking Applicants to fill At-large vacancies. Ten At-large positions are available for re-election and/or new appointment. The t-large positions may represent environmental, agriculture, recreation, domestic water provider, industrial or community interests. It is not mandatory that applicants own or represent water right holdings nor are they required to reside within the geographic region of the three river basins. The application must be submitted by Wednesday, November 2nd, 2016. Applications will be reviewed at the Round Table meeting in Craig on Wednesday, November 9th, 2016. For information and the application contact, April Mcintyre, 970-985-9924, mcintyreapril6@gmail.com.

Funding Opportunities for Early October

Colorado River, near Snyder Mesa

The Sustainable Forestry Initiative is accepting proposals for its SFI Conservation and Community Partnerships grant program. SFI works to foster partnerships between organizations working to improve forest management in the United States and Canada and responsible procurement globally. The program addresses issues such as improving wildlife habitat management and conservation of biodiversity, avoiding controversial sources of fiber such as those resulting from illegal logging, and assisting local communities through forest education programs and green-building projects for low-income families. Qualified organizations may apply for Conversation grants or Community grants. Conservation grants of up to $15,000 will be awarded in support of projects that measure, demonstrate, or establish methodologies to demonstrate the conservation-related values of SFI-certified forestlands, or such values as result from application of the SFI Fiber Sourcing standard. A secondary priority will be given to projects related to the application of the SFI Forest Management or Fiber Sourcing standards, particularly in the areas of forest health, wildlife, fish, biodiversity, or which support the growth of SFI certification within the aboriginal/tribal community or enhance the capacity of this community to assess and manage natural and cultural resources. Community grants of up to $10,000 will be awarded for projects focused on educating youth, promoting respect for traditional indigenous values, helping provide sustainable housing for low-income families, and funding other projects to build understanding of the importance of responsible forestry. For complete eligibility and application guidelines as well as summaries of previously funded projects, see the SFI website. Deadline October 10th, 2016.

National Science Foundation’s Environmental Sustainability Program Grants for research that affect more than one chemical or manufacturing process or that takes a systems or holistic approach to green engineering for infrastructure or green buildings. Improvements in distribution and collection systems that will advance smart growth strategies and ameliorate effects of growth are research areas that are supported by Environmental Sustainability. Innovations in management of storm water, recycling and reuse of drinking water, and other green engineering techniques to support sustainability may also be fruitful areas for research. Application deadline is October 20th, 2016. For details visit grants.gov.

Applications are being accepted for the Colorado Corn FFA Grant program. The National FFA Organization was founded in 1928, and, with its focus on middle school and high school classes that promote and support ag education, is the largest of the career and technical student organizations in U.S. schools. For a fourth year, the Colorado Corn Administrative Committee is accepting applications from FFA chapters around the state as part of its Colorado Corn FFA Grant Program. The Colorado Corn FFA Grant Program assists FFA chapters in Colorado on projects that lack funding within their school district's budget. The deadline to apply is November 15th, 2016. Click HERE for more information.

Conservation Alliance Invites Nominations for Conservation Projects. The Conservation Alliance is a group of outdoor businesses that seeks to protect threatened wild places throughout North America for their habitat and recreational values. As a group of outdoor industry companies, alliance recognizes its responsibility to help protect the wild lands and waterways on which our customers recreate and wildlife thrives. Grants of up to $50,000 will be awarded for projects that seek to secure permanent and quantifiable protection of a specific wild land or waterway. Priority will be given to landscape-scale projects that have a clear benefit for habitat. In addition, campaigns should engage grassroots citizen action in support of the conservation effort and must have a clear recreational benefit. Nominations must be received no later than November 1, 2016. Upon review, selected nominees will be invited to submit full proposals by December 1, 2016. Visit the Conservation Alliance website for program guidelines, information about how to be nominated by an alliance member, and application procedures.

Conferences and Events for Early October

Rafting the Arkansas River

OCTOBER 6TH, 2016: 10th Annual Brews, Boots and Bucks, 5:30 pm – 7:30 pm, Four Mile Historic Park, 715 S. Forest St., Denver, Colorado. Join the Colorado Coalition of Land Trusts (CCLT) in celebrating land conservation in Colorado! This year's program features Luis Benitez, the first director of Colorado’s new Outdoor Recreation Industry Office for a conversation with CCLT Executive Director Amanda Barker on how private land conservation and the outdoor recreation industry are working together. For more information visit their website, www.cclt.org. 

OCTOBER 7th, 2016: 2016 West Slope Environmental Education Conference - Bringing Colorado's EE Plan to Life. This conference will be held from 9:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. at the Ridgway State Park Group Event Facility, located in Pa-Co-Chu-Puk area of the park. Join environmental education (EE) providers and supporters from agencies, nonprofits, schools, and environmental, nature, conservation fields for an engaging summit. Learn more about the Colorado Environmental Education Plan, network and share ideas, and find inspiration from innovative EE leaders. For more information and registration go to www.caee.org.

OCTOBER 8th, 2016: The Friends of Barr Lake’s 4th Annual Harvest Fest at Barr Lake State Park from 9:00 am – 1:00 pm.  There will be lots of fun activities for the kiddos including a petting zoo, face painting, hay rides and a pumpkin market. For more information, contact barr.lake.nature.center@state.us.co or call 303-659-6005.

OCTOBER 8th, 2016: Middle Colorado Watershed Council (MCWC), in partnership with Alpine Bank, for their Third Annual River Cleanup at 8:30 am. They’ll meet at Centennial Park in Rifle, disperse to several cleanup locations, and conclude at noon for a free BBQ and celebration. Tons of trash are removed by the hands of volunteers every year around the nation and you can be a part of it. River cleanups are a great chance to get your hands dirty, meet some new friends, and uncover some strange surprises – They’ll even give an award for the most interesting! Click HERE to register.

GREENWAY FOUNDATION SPREE Fall Family Events. Looking for free family-friendly fun this fall? Join SPREE for:

Family Fishing Day: October 8th, 2016
Pioneering on the Platte: November 5th, 2016

Events are free, but registration is required. Sign up HERE!

OCTOBER 11th - 13th, 2016: Sustaining Colorado Watersheds Conference: A River Runs Out of It: Building Strong Upstream Communities. The Colorado Watershed Assembly in partnership with the Colorado Foundation for Water Education and the Colorado Riparian Association hosts this conference focused on cooperation and collaboration throughout Colorado in natural resource conservation, protection, and enhancement. Registration Opens July 2016! Visit our Conference Page for more information.

OCTOBER 11th, 2016: ThinkWater Workshop in Avon Colorado with the Water Educator Network at the Sustaining Colorado Watersheds Conference. We are fortunate to have Jeremy Solin coming in from the University of Wisconsin to lead us in a ThinkWater workshop. You, your colleagues, networks, members, and your students are invited as well as anyone else who may be interested. This workshop will teach us skills to teaching thinking skills so that our program participants and students are better able to understand the content being delivered. Our participants need skills and structure to understand and apply the water content delivered in education programs.  Systems thinking provides those skills and structure. Systems thinking can help us better design and deliver education programs. Register HERE.

OCTOBER 13th, 2016: Lunch 'n Learn, High Performance Plumbing: Technology that Works for Colorado at Rampart Supply Denver, 252 Rio Grande Blvd., Denver CO 80223. Completing their 2016 technology focus, come learn about the very tangible, physical fixtures that are such an important part of conservation. Join water professionals to hear from an industry expert and Toto President Bill Strang about the evolution of high-performance plumbing. This timely information supports the transition underway in Colorado to adopt WaterSense approved fixtures and supports the Colorado Water Plan. This event is free but registration is required. Register at coloradowaterwise.org.

NOVEMBER 2nd & 3rd, 2016: The Sixth Annual Upper Colorado River Basin Forum will be held at Colorado Mesa University in Grand Junction. The theme is"Complex Systems in Flux: Changing Relationships between Water, People and the Environment." They have a CALL FOR ABSTRACTS on presentation proposals from water managers, policy makers, scholars and other stakeholders. The call for abstracts is available here.

NOVEMBER 9th - 11th, 2016: Strengthening Collaborative Capacity for Better Water Decisions at the Sylvan Dale Ranch, Loveland Colorado.  Good water policy decisions require decision-making processes that encourage collaboration and consensus building as well as best practices and skills to find solutions that are in the best interest of communities, the environment, and stakeholders interested in water allocation. The future of water in Colorado and the West requires the best collaborative problem-solving and consensus building skills available. This interactive workshop is designed to strengthen capacity among water leaders and professionals to design and implement highly functioning collaborative processes and apply them to practical and complex issues affecting Colorado and the West. For more information click HERE.

NOVEMBER 16th, 2016: Colorado Groundwater Conference at the Doubletree by Hilton, Denver, 3203 Quebec Street, Denver 80207. This is a one-day conference for state legislators, local government officials, water managers, regulators, environmental organizations, agriculture, industry and water utility end users and their scientific, engineering and legal advisors. Topics will include managing groundwater in Denver Basin aquifers, water banking, water reallocation and water rights trading In Colorado. Click HERE for more information.

NOVEMBER 17th, 2016: Colorado Water Supply Systems Workshop at the Doubletree by Hilton, Denver, 3203 Quebec Street, Denver 80207. Is a one-day program on practical, cost-effective solutions that work.  The workshop will explain how to maximize yields and pump performance on existing wells and ensure correct design, construction, pump and pump control selection, and maintenance on new wells. New or existing, this program will enable groundwater users to reduce energy costs and prolong well life.  Hear from experts about technologies and techniques to save money by maximizing efficiency and increasing performance. For detailed information and registration click HERE.

NOVEMBER 14th, 2016: Sustainable Denver Summit, Alliance for Sustainable Colorado, Downtown Denver Sheraton from 9:00 am – 5:00 pm. The Sustainable Denver Summit is about working together to create long-term strategies and specific commitments to achieve our 2020 Sustainability Goals. Breakout Tracks include: Energy Solutions, Affordable Housing, Density and Mobility, Water Systems, Materials and Waste Management, and Food and Health Systems. For more information click HERE.

DECEMBER 2nd, 2016: Save the date, The 8th Annual Colorado WaterWise Water Conservation Summit is coming on at St Cajetans, Auraria Campus. Visit ColoradoWaterWise.org to register and be a part of this great event.

Trainings for Early October

Water Sampling Tools, Lake City

OCTOBER 6th, 2016: Webinar, Post-Fire Funding: What's Available & How to Access It. Earn 1 PDH / 0.1 CEUs. Are you tasked with emergency erosion control response after a fire? Fire mitigation planning before a fire event occurs is the key to obtaining funding after a fire event. Do you know what funding resources are out there? How they work? And...how to apply for them (and win)? In this webinar, they'll start with a look at current wildfire trends, behaviors, and impacts, and illustrate the importance of mitigation planning before a fire event. They'll overview the potential post-fire environmental impacts and hazards (e.g., hydrologic, geotechnical, geomorphic), and how you can identify these at your sites. For more information and to register click HERE.

OCTOBER 12th, 2016: Webcast: Retrofitting Revisited: Forward Into the Past, 1:00 pm - 2:30 pm, Eastern, with The Center for Watershed Protection. This webcast will focus on the restoration of urban and suburban watersheds through stormwater retrofitting. In particular, They will revisit some past case studies highlighted in earlier webcasts and discuss the design and implementation of stormwater retrofit practices, how the retrofits have been performing, and what lessons were learned during the process. The webcast will also provide information about the cost and pollutant removal performance of stormwater retrofits. To register click HERE.

OCTOBER 24th, 2016: Train-the-Trainer Workshop: Integrating Water into Land Use Planning, 1:00 pm – 5:00 pm. This free workshop is targeted to local government planners and water providers who want to be trained to provide educational workshops in their community and/or region to explore issues of water and land use planning and how to develop effective plans and implementation strategies for water conservation. Participants will be guided in three training modules and learn how to conduct educational workshops for local government leaders in their region. The modules will help trainers enhance communication and provide specific land use techniques regarding water efficiency and land use. The Colorado Water Conservation Board with support from the Department of Local Affairs are coordinating this educational effort. This Train-the-Trainer workshop is being offered in conjunction with the American Planning Association, Colorado State Conference in Colorado Springs at the Antlers Hotel.
The training workshop is free, but space is limited. Click HERE to register.

OCTOBER 25TH, 2016: River Network webinar, Water Scarcity as a Catalyst for Integrated Water Management – Creating Multiple Benefits for Your Community and River, 2:00 pm Eastern - 3:30 pm Eastern. At scales ranging from the neighborhood and city to the watershed and basin, some communities are doing the work of breaking down the silos in water management to increase sustainability and equitably maximize benefits across the community and watershed. So, what does “Integrated Water Management” mean for your watershed and your community? Where has it been used and what are the benefits and challenges? Can it help your community achieve “triple bottom line” (environmental, social and economic) benefits? Join them to learn how communities in Washington and San Francisco – driven by limited water resources – are seeking ways to integrate water management with other sectors and at varying scales, from the Basin to the building level. Click HERE for more information.

Announcements for Early October

Cascade Creek, near Durango

On Tuesday, October 11, 2016, the Water Quality Control Commission (WQCC) will hold a public Administrative Action Hearing beginning at 10:30 a.m. in the CDPHE Florence Sabin Conference Room at 4300 Cherry Creek Drive South, Denver, CO 80246-1530. This hearing is to consider approval of the Water Quality Control Division’s proposed FY 2017 Intended Use Plans for the Water Pollution Control Revolving Fund (WPCRF) and the Drinking Water Revolving Fund (DWRF). The proposed intended use plans for FY 2017 funding are available on the commission’s website at: https://www.colorado.gov/pacific/cdphe/wqcc-administrative-action-hearings. Questions regarding the Intended Use Plans and/or the Project Eligibility lists should be directed to Erick Worker by email at erick.worker@state.co.us or by phone at (303) 692-3594; or Brad Monson by email at bradley.monson@state.co.us or by phone at (303) 692-2286.

The September 2016 Drought Update, a summary of the drought information presented at the September 16, 2016 Water Availability Task Force Meeting will be posted on the CWCB website.  All of the presentations from the meeting can also be found on the CWCB website. If you have questions regarding the Drought Update, please contact Taryn Finnessey at taryn.finnessey@state.co.us.

Colorado Corn has partnered with Colorado State University's Rural Energy Center to assess the economic feasibility of solar and wind energy on farms with center pivot sprinklers. The project -- called Solar and Wind Assessments for Pivots (SWAP) -- was based on the idea that corners of fields with center pivot sprinklers could host solar arrays or wind turbines. These systems would be tied into the grid to offset electricity used for irrigation pumping. Click HERE for more information about the SWAP program.

Mark your calendar for the 2017 National Watershed & Stormwater Conference on Tuesday, April 4, 2017. The conference is designed to allow both in-person discussion at multiple locations and online attendance.  Participants can learn about local and national stormwater and watershed issues while networking at their preferred attendance location. Major conference topics include: IDDE, Public Education, National Certification, Monitoring, and Stream Restoration. Learn about exciting research, case studies, innovative technology, and special regional considerations from experts around the country. Registration will open soon. Stay tuned for more information on registration and sponsorship! For more information visit cwp.org.

The Colorado Wildland Fire Conference is accepting presentation proposals. The conference will be held April 19 – 21, 2017 at the Pueblo Convention Center in Pueblo, CO. This conference will provide an atmosphere for professionals and landowners to have solutions-oriented discussions about creating communities in Colorado that are adapted to wildfire. This year’s conference will expand on the Fire Adapted Communities concept, providing the framework for moving from awareness to action, messaging to mitigation, and words to work. This is a great opportunity to share your knowledge and expertise about reducing communities’ vulnerability to wildfire. The conference planning committee is looking for presentations that focus on innovative research influencing policy changes; case studies of overcoming barriers to planning and implementation; and success stories of on the ground actions to create Fire Adapted Communities. Submit your presentation proposals online HERE. Presentation proposals are due Friday, November 18, 2016 by 11:59 p.m.