In June 2024, the Colorado Healthy Headwaters Working Group (HHWG, co-chaired by Abby Burk of Audubon Rockies and Jackie Corday, Corday Consulting) with the support of Water For Colorado hosted a process-based stream restoration workshop in Carbondale, Colorado. This two-track workshop was sparked by the more than 800 people who received the HHWG training on Colorado SB23-270 and afterward provided input on the next steps and needs. Our goal for the workshop was to further assist Colorado stream restoration practitioners, nonprofit organizations, watershed groups, philanthropic foundations, and state and federal agencies in learning more about identifying opportunities and planning successful process-based riverscape restoration in their local watersheds. This included information on how to apply the criteria “on the ground” under Colorado's new SB23-270 law and build local support for projects, as well as best management practices to reduce risks for water rights conflict and knowledge sharing from peers and administrative partners on how to increase project confidence and promote effective, community-celebrated, and ecologically beneficial stream restoration projects.
Thank you to our many speakers and the more than 140 participants who joined us for the event and are working to restore Colorado’s riverscapes! To keep the momentum from our rich time together flowing, please review and enjoy the workshop presentation resources. We have gathered them below for workshop attendees and others who are involved in stream restoration in Colorado.
Process-Based Stream Restoration Workshop Resources
General Resources
- Training Manual (version 1): Translating SB23-270 Projects to Restore Natural Stream Ecosystems – Colorado Healthy Headwaters Working Group and Water for Colorado
- SB270 Overview & Best Management Practices for Stream Restoration Projects – Colorado Healthy Headwaters Working Group and Water for Colorado
- Restoring Western Headwater Streams with Low-Tech Process-Based Methods: A Review of the Science and Case Study Results, Challenges, and Opportunities – American Rivers
Track 1: Restoration Planning Resources
Track 1 provides training and resources for those who oversee and manage restoration projects, hire restoration practitioners, and do desktop and field analysis to determine the best locations and opportunities for restoration.
Presentation Slide Decks
- Fundamentals of Process-based Restoration – Dr. Brian Murphy, The River Network
- SB23-270 Review: Projects to Restore Natural Stream Systems – Abby Burk, Audubon Rockies, and Jackie Corday, Corday Consulting
- Tools for Finding Restoration Conservation Opportunities: from Watersheds to Sites – Sarah Marshall, Colorado Natural Heritage Program - Updated version coming soon.
- Site Selection as a Drive of Project Success for Partnering with Beaver – Allison Vitello, Arable Earth
- Colorado Division of Water Resources' Role in Stream Restoration Projects – Caleb Foy, Colorado Division of Water Resources
- Planning for Process-based Restoration in Your Watershed – Chelsey Heiden, Ayres Associates, and Michael Blazewicz, Round River Design
- Bureau of Land Management Tools for Stream Restoration – Alden Shallcross, Bureau of Land Management
- United States Army Corps of Engineers Permitting for Stream Restoration – Tyler Adams and Robert Frank, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
- Best Management Practices for Processed-based Restoration – Abby Burk, Audubon Rockies and Jackie Corday, Corday Consulting
- Floodplain Permitting – Julie Ash, Stillwater Sciences
Mapping and Planning Tools
- Colorado Watershed Resilience Tool – American Rivers and Colorado Natural Heritage Program
- Colorado Beaver Activity Mapper – Colorado Natural Heritage Program
Other Resources
- Colorado Fluvial Hazard Zones – Colorado Water Conservation Board
- Watershed Protection and Restoration – Colorado Water Conservation Board
Watch a recording of the Track 1 workshop below.
Track 2: Resources for Supporting Stream Restoration Work
Track 2 provides non-technical training for those who contribute to stream restoration communications, fundraising, partnership building, and policy work.
Presentation Slide Decks
- Public Funding for Low-Tech Process-Based Restoration in Colorado – Alex Funk, Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership
- Colorado West Land Trust – David Varner, Colorado West Land Trust
- Planning and Funding a Stream Restoration Project – Adde Sharp, National Forest Foundation
- Badger Creek Riparian Restoration – Natalie Allio, National Grazing Lands Coalition
- Accelerating Riparian Restoration through Community Engagement – Joe Leonhard, The Nature Conservancy
- Low-Tech Process-Based Restoration and Beaver Reintroduction on the Rio Grande National Forest – Rosalee Reese and Jason Remshardt, Rio Grande National Forest, and Conor Born, Rio Grande Headwaters Restoration Project
Watch a recording of the Track 2 workshop below.
