Colorado Parks and Wildlife seeks applications for projects that will restore wetland habitat
Joey Livingston
DENVER - Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) is seeking applications for wetland and riparian restoration, enhancement and creation projects to support its Wetland Wildlife Conservation Program.CPW will award over $1.1 million in funds from Great Outdoors Colorado (GOCO) and Colorado Waterfowl Stamps to projects in Colorado that support the Wetlands Program Strategic Plan’s two main goals:
- Improve the distribution and abundance of ducks, and opportunities for public waterfowl hunting. Applications supporting this goal should seek to improve fall/winter habitat on property open for public hunting (or refuge areas within properties open for public hunting), or improve breeding habitat in important production areas (including North Park and the San Luis Valley in Colorado, and other areas contributing ducks to the fall flight in Colorado).
- Improve the status of declining or at-risk species. Applications supporting this goal should seek to clearly address habitat needs of these species. See species list on the Wetlands Priority Species page. Also see the identified threats, recommended conservation actions and progress to date for these species in the Colorado State Wildlife Action Plan (SWAP) Conservation Dashboards.
What’s new for 2024
For projects on CPW properties (State Wildlife Areas and State Parks), CPW's Regional Water Specialist must be consulted before applying. For additional questions, contact CPW Wetlands Program Coordinator Brian Sullivan at [email protected].
About the program
The Colorado Wetlands for Wildlife Program is a voluntary, collaborative and incentive-based program to restore, enhance and create wetlands and riparian areas in Colorado. Funds are allocated annually to the program and projects are recommended for funding by a CPW committee with final approval by the Director.
“Wetlands are so important,” said CPW Wetlands Program Coordinator Brian Sullivan. “They comprise less than two percent of Colorado’s landscape, but provide benefits to over 75 percent of the wildlife species in the state, including waterfowl and many declining species. Since the beginning of major settlement activities, Colorado has lost half of its wetlands.”
Since its inception in 1997, the Colorado Wetlands Program and its partners has preserved, restored, enhanced or created more than 225,000 acres of wetlands and adjacent habitat and more than 210 miles of streams. The partnership is responsible for more than $50 million in total funding devoted to wetland and riparian preservation in Colorado.
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Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) is an enterprise agency, relying primarily on license sales, state parks fees and registration fees to support its operations, including: 43 state parks and more than 350 wildlife areas covering approximately 900,000 acres, management of fishing and hunting, wildlife watching, camping, motorized and non-motorized trails, boating and outdoor education. CPW's work contributes approximately $6 billion in total economic impact annually throughout Colorado.