Clear Creek Watershed and Forest Health Partnership Background
The upper Clear Creek watershed drains a 400 square mile area originating in headwaters at the Continental Divide and extending eastward (downstream) to Golden.
In 2019, a pre-wildfire risk evaluation study was commissioned by the Upper Clear Creek Watershed Association (UCCWA), the City of Golden, and the Standley Lake IGA Cities of Northglenn, Thornton, and Westminster. The study report completed in 2021 identified key needs for wildfire risk management in the basin, including:
Specific watercourse, forest, and infrastructure vulnerabilities;
Priority mitigation project options to manage fuels, stream channels, floodplains, wildland-urban interface, and;
A need to establish a watershed stakeholder partnership to address these issues.
The Clear Creek Watershed & Forest Health Partnership (CCWFHP) formed to meet the need for Clear Creek stakeholder coordination and collaboration to facilitate taking action on wildfire risk. The immediate purpose of the Partnership is to establish an organizational and financial structure to implement wildfire risk-reduction projects in the upper watershed, and to support partners in community education and outreach.
