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3/08 - Colorado Watershed Protection Fund Watch the video, check the box, support our rivers! More... 1/08 - January Ice Floe Rumbles Through Midvalley Within a matter of minutes the afternoon of January 2nd, the Roaring Fork River morphed from clear blue to a torrent of ice and debris. Recent below zero temperatures created anchor ice which led to an ice dam in Snowmass Canyon. When the dam broke loose, it sent a wave of water and ice five times the normal river flow churning downstream. In a matter of minutes the river gage at Emma went from 300 cfs to over 1400 cfs. The floe, moving like icy lava, picked up ice, downed trees and even a beaver (lower photo)! An occasional occurance this time of year, ice floes can provide some benefit for aquatic habitat but can pose a serious threat to anglers. Water Quality Coordinator Chad Rudow, who witnessed the ice floe, was amazed with the amount and size of debris that the river moved. "It's one of those events that makes you realize how powerful the river is." To read more news coverage about the ice floe: Aspen Times 1/3/08. Photos by Chad Rudow/Roaring Fork Conservancy and Liz Phillips 11/07 - Miller Begins Study of Fryingpan Mudslide  At the request of Roaring Fork Conservancy, Miller Ecological Consultants has begun its study of the effects of the August 6, 2007 mudslide on the sediment and macroinvertebrates in the Fryingpan River. Using a technique to freeze core samples of river sediment, Miller will look at the sediment deposition in the Fryingpan and its effects on aquatic insects in the river. Results and recommendations should be available in early 2008. At that time RFC will hold a public meeting to release Miller's results and discuss what actions local agencies should take to address the increased sediment from the slide. More... 9/07 - Scientist Gives Outlook on Future of Water  Roaring Fork Conservancy sponsored a talk by acclaimed University of Colorado professor Ken Strzepek on climate change and its effects on Western water September 20 in Aspen. For over 20 years Strzepek and his colleagues have been studying the effects of a warmer climate on precipitation and water availability. Among his key points were: in the future, Colorado will receive more of its precipitation as rain creating an earlier peak runoff; flooding events will become more common as there is less ability for water to be held as snow; and climate change may necessitate changes to water policy in the West in the future. If you missed the talk, tune into www.grassrootstv.org for re-broadcasts of the event.9/07 - River Turns Red Monday from Seven Castles Creek  The lower Fryingpan and Roaring Fork Rivers were running red again Monday morning due to overnight thunderstorms and erosion up Seven Castles Creek. A common occurance after heavy rains, the red Maroon formation rocks of Seven Castles easily erode and send sediment pouring into the Fryingpan River. Seven Castles is the same area that created a large mudslide on August 6 that pushed the Fryingpan River a few hundred feet south of its previous channel. Read more about that event at www.roaringfork.org/news.8/07 - RFC Addresses Issues Resulting from Slide  Shortly after a large mudslide came crashing down Seven Castles Creek on August 6, 2007, Roaring Fork Conservancy was there. As evidenced on the cover of the Aspen Times August 7 and 8, RFC Executive Director Rick Lofaro has been working on the issue from day one. "This slide is pretty amazing and made some significant changes to the river," admits Lofaro. "The more we study it, the more we discover the benefits for the river and surrounding habitat long term." In the short-run the Fryingpan River has been running muddy red since the slide, depositing larger than normal amounts of sediment on the river bottom for miles downstream. "We've learned that a natural event like this creates a longer river channel, more cottonwood habitat, slows the river down, and created a great pool in the river above it. All of these things will help the river down the road."  Currently RFC is working with the Colorado Division of Wildlife and the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation on the appropriate timing of an increased flow from Ruedi Reservoir to wash the sediment out. "Talking to our scientific experts, we feel the flush would be best suited for the springtime when insects are not as vulnerable and when spring runoff will assist with the flush," explains Lofaro. As of August 31, the Division of Wildlife has decided not to conduct a flushing flow on the Fryingpan River this fall. Roaring Fork Conservancy will continue to address this and future river issues as it always has - proactively and scientifically. More news articles on the slide: www.roaringfork.org/news.7/07 - 8th Annual River Rendezvous A Huge Success  Over 300 people attended this year's River Rendezvous at Chaparral Aspen on July 18, 2007. The event, all about rivers and raising support for Roaring Fork Conservancy, included dancing, auctions, dinner and western hospitality. Recognized at the event was the 2007 Robert Billingsley River Conservator Award, Taylor Creek Fly Shop manager Tim Heng. Thanks to your support we met our fundraising goals and held the best celebration of rivers the valley has seen yet! More...6/07 - River Float 2007: Sun, Wildlife, Learning, & Fun!  Under sunny skies and warm temperatures, 150 people saw the Roaring Fork Valley from the river's perspective on June 2. For the fourth consecutive year, Roaring Fork Conservancy has treated the community to a free public float through one of the most incredible sections of river in the West. With bald eagles, great blue herons, and Lewis' woodpeckers perched overhead fifteen volunteer naturalists discussed wildlife, water issues, and riparian ecology during the two-hour float from Carbondale to Glenwood Springs. "I learned so much from Stephen Ellsperman, our naturalist." commented one participant during the post-float barbeque. "He is just so knowledgeable and gave us such great insight on what we were seeing." Roaring Fork Conservancy would like to thank all of the volunteer naturalists, event volunteers, boat sponsors and rafting guides who made this event the best yet.
If you couldn't join us on River Float 2007, we are offering a series of Scenic Floats on the Roaring Fork in late June and early July. For more information, click www.roaringfork.org/events. 3/07 - New Look, Same Proactive OrganizationWelcome to Roaring Fork Conservancy’s second decade of river protection! As we forge ahead, you will notice that we’ve updated our look. The dipper continues to grace our logo and our watershed. Similar to a canary in a coal mine, the dipper is an excellent indicator species of healthy streams and is our canary for the watershed. Like the dipper, Roaring Fork Conservancy watches over the Roaring Fork Watershed with bird’s eye precision.  Thankfully, the Roaring Fork Watershed still has healthy rivers that support a wide variety of wildlife. There are more miles of Gold Medal trout streams here than any other place in Colorado, and most sections of the watershed boast abundant clean river water and the life it supports. What does the 21st century hold for our rivers? The Roaring Fork Watershed is a source of fresh water for millions of visitors, residents, and 85% of wildlife in the arid west. Already up to 40% of Roaring Fork Roaring Fork River above Aspen is diverted away to thirsty communities on the Front Range. Certainly the future holds even more pressures, more development, more demands on these pristine waters. But who will protect this fragile resource? With your help Roaring Fork Conservancy will be here to protect all Roaring Fork Valley rivers and streams for decades to come. Your donation of time or resources to Roaring Fork Conservancy helps support riparian land conservation, watershed planning and research, water quality and water quantity monitoring, and river stewardship education for children and adults. 2/07 - RFC Conducts Focus Groups on Future River Center  Roaring Fork Conservancy conducted focus groups on February 6 and 7, 2007 where we gave stakeholders and the public our initial vision for the River Center. Whether or not you attended these meetings we want your feedback on our vision. To see what we're up to, comment on plans and find up-to-date information on the River Center project, please visit: www.roaringfork.org/rivercenter. If you have any questions, comments or concerns, please email us or call us at (970) 927-1290. We appreciate your input! 1/07 - Watershed Plan Gets Green Light and Greenbacks  If global warming, dry stream beds, and Roaring Fork water being diverted to the Front Range keeps you up at night, you’re in for some good news for a change. The first, comprehensive watershed plan for the Roaring Fork Valley is moving forward under the sponsorship of the Ruedi Water and Power Authority. The Authority approved Phase I of the Watershed Plan project at their December meeting, including a contract with Roaring Fork Conservancy to take the lead on the planning effort. “We can now start spending money on this vital community effort,” said Mark Fuller, RWAPA’s Executive Director. RWAPA approved work on the Plan at their quarterly meeting on December 6, 2006. Read Full Article...Groups join together for valley watershed plan - Glenwood Springs Post Independent 1/9/07 Roaring Fork River protection gets a boost - Aspen Daily News 1/14/07 11/06 - Roaring Fork Conservancy Spearheads Macroinvertebrate Study  This past fall Roaring Fork Conservancy sampled your local streams and creeks for macroinvertebrates, or more commonly, aquatic bugs. Part of a joint research project with the University of Colorado-Colorado Springs, Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, and the U.S. Forest Service, 18 different sites were sampled throughout the watershed, including the Roaring Fork River and many of its tributaries. Sampling macroinvertebrates can tell us quite a bit about the health of creeks and rivers. The variety and quantity of insects found are often closely related to the amount of oxygen and pollutants in the water. By sampling these living water quality indicators, Roaring Fork Conservancy hopes to better understand future changes in river health throughout the watershed. For more information: Water Quality Monitoring program.11/06 - November marks the 10th Anniversary! Roaring Fork Conservancy was founded in November 1996 with a mission to protect the valley's rivers and streams. With help from hundreds of supporters, hundreds of volunteers, and dozens of partners we have accomplished a great deal in our first ten years. Here's a sampling: Thank you for joining us in bringing people together to protect our rivers! We look forward to being your Roaring Fork watershed conservation organization for the next ten years!  Roaring Fork Conservancy worked with Colorado Water Conservation Board and Colorado Division of Water Resource (CDWR) to fund and install a new stream gage on the lower Crystal River this fall.
Low summer flows in the lower Crystal River are a threat to healthy trout populations. Since 2000 instream flow amounts were met less than 50% of the time in August and September. The flows upstream of this gage are often lower than those measured at the mouth of the Crystal because of large return flows. The new gage will measure these lower flows, allowing the CDWR to place calls on the river to better meet the CWCB instream flow amounts. In 2004, the CDWR determined that this gage would have allowed an estimated additional 24 cfs in the river during the low flow late summer months. Roaring Fork Conservancy raised funds towards five years of operation and maintenance of the gage through its High Mountain Masters benefit flyfishing tournament in August 2006. 10/06 - Overall, Roaring Fork Water Quality is Healthy Roaring Fork Conservancy is pleased to announce the release of its 2006 Roaring Fork Watershed Water Quality Report. The report is a synopsis of water quality data collected by Stream Team volunteers, River Watch schools, and Roaring Fork Conservancy staff over the past several years at 24 stations watershed-wide. Overall the Roaring Fork Watershed has high water quality in its rivers and streams. However, the report sheds light on some streams that need attention: Brush Creek, Fourmile Creek, Cattle Creek and the lower Crystal River. Using this information Roaring Fork Conservancy will partner with other organizations to study these impacted streams and determine how best to improve water quality.
Thanks to the dozens of volunteers who helped collect water quality data and made this report possible! If you are interested in joining the water quality monitoring network, email chad@roaringfork.org.  About two dozen local citizens toured Ruedi Reservoir and hydroelectric powerplant on August 9th with staff from the Roaring Fork Conservancy and Ruedi Water & Power Authority. Part of the Conservancy's series of Watershed Explorations, Inside Ruedi Dam and Reservoir Tour gave participants a first-hand look at the history and current operations of the dam. At almost 1,000 acres, Ruedi Reservoir is the largest reservoir in the Roaring Fork Valley and is an important part of supplying water to the western slope as water above it is being diverted east.  The dam was constructed between 1964 and 1968 as part of the federal Fryingpan-Arkansas Project. The hydroelectric powerplant at the base is cabable of using 300 cubic feet per second of water to make about one-third of the City of Aspen's electricity. For more on Ruedi Reservoir click on the links below:Transbasin Diversions | Ruedi Reservoir Resources 5/06 - Fryingpan River Clean Up A Huge Success!  Over 100 people volunteered to help clean up the Fryingpan River on Saturday April 29th. Volunteers young and old picked up hundreds of bags of trash and recyclables along a 13-mile stretch of river below Ruedi Dam and along the Roaring Fork River near Basalt. Congratulations to Award winners: Best of Trash - Kai Love; Most Useful - Patsy Cortez; Most Unusual - Besty McMichael; and Most Toxic - Doug Olson. Thanks to our sponsors: The Lynn Nichols & Jim Gilchrist Family, Ann Nichols, Bob Jacobson, John Winter, Waste Solutions, Eagle County, Roaring Fork Club, The Back Door Catering, and Town of Basalt.4/06 - A sanctuary amid the construction  By Donna GrayGlenwood Springs Post Independent It's not all bare ground at Bair Chase these days. Below the view of motorists cruising by the halted subdivision and golf course property south of Glenwood Springs, along the Roaring Fork River and the margins of Cattle Creek, is a wildlife sanctuary preserved through a conservation easement with the Roaring Fork Conservancy. 4/27/06 Read the full Post Independent article... 4/06 - Conservancy Joins Roadless Area Protection Efforts Roaring Fork Conservancy has joined over a dozen organizations and several municipalities in the Roaring Fork Valley in protecting of hundreds of thousands of acres of roadless areas in the Roaring Fork Watershed. At issue is President Bush's 2005 repeal of the Roadless Area Conservation Rule which formerly protected over 280,000 acres of roadless areas in the White River National Forest. Under the new policy, Governor Owens is responsible for gathering input and making a recommendation to the federal government on how these lands will be managed in Colorado. Public input is vital to what Governor Owens recommends. Citizens for Roadless Area Defense is encouraging the public to weigh in on this issue by writing letters and attending the only local public hearing in Glenwood Springs on June 21, 2006 at 5pm at the Hotel Colorado. In the Roaring Fork Watershed over 175,000 acres in 24 specific areas are up for consideration in June. Most of these parcels are headwaters regions while a few are adjacent to the Fryingpan, Roaring Fork and Crystal Rivers. The potential negative impacts are greatest in the upper Fryingpan and Thompson Creek areas of our watershed. More information: Citizens for Roadless Area Defense: www.wrroadless.org Roaring Fork Conservancy: Concerns regarding additional road building in the Roaring Fork Watershed 2/06 - Stream Flow Survey Report Released How is our watershed plumbed? That is essentially the question posed by the Roaring Fork Conservancy's recently released Stream Flow Survey Report. Initiated in 2003 and completed this spring, the project used several sources of data to determine where and when low-flows happen on our rivers.  The study quantifies the magnitude of flow alterations (due to dams, diversions and water use) and compares them to historic natural flows, according to Sharon Clarke, the project's manager. "It also quantifies when and where Colorado Water Conservation Board in-stream flows are not being met." These junior water rights are supposed to maintain a healthy aquatic environment in the river. "The report gives us information to talk with water users to try to improve flows -- that's the next step." The Conservancy will work with members of the Roaring Fork Watershed Collaborative to identify sections of rivers, like the Crystal River pictured above, that need the most attention. You can read the report in it's entirety and view maps of some of the results at www.roaringfork.org/publications. For more information or questions email: sharon@roaringfork.org. 3/13/06 12/05 - Moose Sightings May Be More Common in Future  Recent sightings of moose near No Name, Canyon Creek, Rifle, Thompson Creek, Aspen, and the upper Fryingpan have sparked interest in the largest member of the deer family. The Colorado Division of Wildlife (CDOW) released three animals on the Grand Mesa in January of 2005, with a goal of establishing a stable population of 150 animals in six or seven years. In mid-January of this year, the CDOW began doubling the number of animals on Grand Mesa in cooperation with the Utah Division of Wildlife. With less than fifty miles between Grand Mesa and the Roaring Fork Watershed, migrating moose could become a more common sight in our valley in the future. Moose depend on a healthy riparian area for browse that includes stems, leaves, buds, bark of deciduous trees (primarily willow), and large amounts of aquatic vegetation during the summer. For more information on moose click on Wildlife.11/05 - RFCParticipates in Finding Roaring Fork Headwaters Solutions  Roaring Fork Conservancy recently participated in a unique collaborative effort to find a water management solution in the headwaters of the Roaring Fork Watershed. Organized by the Colorado River Water Conservation District, representatives from over 15 organizations gathered in October to tour the Twin Lakes collection system near Lost Man Campground below Independence Pass. As a result of the tour, participants are working collaboratively to find a solution to low winter flows in the Roaring Fork River. Read more about the tour and collaborative effort at www.crwcd.org. 11/16/0511/05 - Outdoor Classes at Filoha Meadows
 Over 40 volunteers joined the Roaring Fork Conservancy and partners for the first annual tamarisk removal day in Glenwood Springs on October 22nd. Battling one of the toughest weeds in the Western United States, volunteers young and old helped remove tamarisk from a gravel bar near the Colorado River. Native to Asia, tamarisk is notorious for choking out native vegetation and using copious amounts of water. A single plant can absorb up to 200 gallons of water per day! If you spot tamarisk in the Roaring Fork Valley, please inform us at (970) 927-1290. For more information on tamarisk and how to identify it, visit: www.tamariskcoalition.org. 10/28/059/05 - RFC Hits TV Airwaves Two recent Roaring Fork Conservancy events are hitting the airwaves!  In June a camera crew from the Food Network's BBQ with Bobby Flay filmed River Float 2005. The Thrills & Grills episode (number BQ0305), which features the Conservancy's end-of-float BBQ, will air October 5 and again on October 6 and 22 on the Food Network. Check the Food Network's website for the latest airtimes.  In September Grassroots TV filmed the inspiring lecture by Colorado Supreme Cour Justice Gregory Hobbs. Part of the Conservancy's speaker series on Water & You, Justice Hobbs spoke on History and Culture of Colorado Water. For latest airtimes visit: www.grassrootstv.org. Justice Hobbs signing copies of his book after speaking in Aspen. Carlyle Kyzer 10/04 - Conservancy Opposes Referendum A  Roaring Fork Conservancy has taken an official stance opposing Referendum A, which Colorado voters will be asked to vote on in November. Referendum A proposes an increase in the State's debt by $2 billion to support water infrastructure projects. The Conservancy has highlighted the following issues in its opposition: |
Filoha Meadows along the banks of the Crystal River below Redstone has been alive with activity this fall. Students from Carbondale Community School and Crystal River Elementary School have learned about riparian habitat and beavers at this pristine outdoor classroom. Acquired by Pitkin County Open Space & Trails, the Roaring Fork Conservancy holds the conservation easement on the property and conducts educational programs there as part of a unique partnership between Pitkin County and the Roaring Fork Conservancy. To find out how your student's class can visit Filoha Meadows, email |
Site managed by: Roaring Fork Conservancy P.O. Box 3349 | Basalt, Colorado 81621 Tel: (970) 927-1290 | info@roaringfork.org © 2002-2008 |