Degener's penstemon (Penstemon degeneri) is a perennial herb in the Plantaginaceae (Plaintain Family) that is found only in Fremont, Custer and Chaffee counties, and is considered to be imperiled at a global and state level. When flowering, it has beautiful blue-purple flower spikes. One of the biggest conservation issues for this imperiled plant species is the lack of awareness of its existence and status. Avoiding or minimizing impacts to this species during road maintenance activities will effectively help to conserve its habitat and is unlikely to confer substantial impacts on road maintenance goals and projects.
In Colorado, no single state agency is responsible for wetlands, but many agencies and organizations have their own plans that either specifically address wetland protection, regulation, and management or involve wetland and aquatic resources indirectly. The intent of this WPP is to tie together the priorities, goals, objectives, and actions embedded in existing state plans, and identified through the development of this WPP, into one comprehensive document. The agencies involved in the aforementioned plans explicitly support the development of a multi-agency WPP and recognize the benefits of having a consolidated wetland plan.
This report includes a summary of the results of the past ten years of population monitoring of targeted noxious weeds at the U.S. Air force Academy, emphasizing changes that were observed between 2012 and 2015.
Gunnison milkvetch (Astragalus anisus) is a small plant in the Fabaceae (Pea Family) that is known only from the Gunnison Basin in Gunnison and Saguache counties, Colorado, and is considered to be imperiled at a global and state level. Avoiding or minimizing impacts to this species during road maintenance will effectively help to conserve its habitat and is unlikely to confer substantial impacts on road maintenance goals and projects.
Rollins' twinpod (Physaria rollinsii) is a small plant in the Brassicaceae (Mustard Family) that is known only from west central Colorado in Gunnison and Mesa counties, Colorado, and is considered to be imperiled at a global and state level. One of the biggest conservation issues for this imperiled plant species is the lack of awareness of its existence and status. Avoiding or minimizing impacts to this species during road maintenance activities will effectively help to conserve its habitat and is unlikely to confer substantial impacts on road maintenance goals and projects.
The Southern Rockies Landscape Conservation Cooperative (SRLCC) covers over 36 million acres in Colorado and spans a wide elevation gradient from high Rocky Mountain peaks to dry plateaus of the Colorado's west slope. Wetlands are similarly variable within this region and are particularly important for wildlife habitat, as they are often more productive than the surrounding uplands. In addition, wetlands are an integral component of regional hydrologic cycles through their role in flood abatement, storm water retention, groundwater recharge, and water quality improvement.
The purpose of the Wetlands Program Book is to document critical information needed to implement the Colorado Department of Transportation's (CDOT) Wetlands Program. The mission of CDOT's Wetlands Program is to provide technical assistance for transportation project development and construction in order to minimize potential negative impacts to the state's wetlands and aquatic ecosystems.
The FACWet was developed by surveying existing wetland rapid assessment methodologies and blending the best aspects these approaches with the most recent advances in wetland science.
The goal of this document is to promote state policy recommendations and actions that help to improve Colorado's ability to adapt to future climate change impacts and increase Colorado's state agencies level of preparedness, while simultaneously identifying opportunities to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) at the agency level. In this plan, the major sectors of the state government are addressed, specific actions are called for, and policy recommendations are made. Because addressing climate change is best addressed collaboratively, this plan has been developed collectively by the Department of Natural Resources (DNR), the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE), the Colorado Energy Office (CEO), the Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT), the Colorado Department of Agriculture (CDA), the Office of Economic Development and International Trade (OEDIT), and the Department of Local Affairs (DOLA), with input from key stakeholders.
Wildlife fencing along highways can lower wildlife-vehicle collision rates by excluding animals from the road right-of-way. Still, animals can breach fencing and end up trapped within the fencing along the highway right-of-way, exposing wildlife and motorists to the risk of collision. Wildlife escape ramps are designed to allow animals safe passage out of the right-of-way. Few recommendations exist on effective design of escape ramps and monitoring data are limited.
This report serves as an interim deliverable to the Interbasin Compact Process Basin Roundtables for both the Metro Roundtable and the South Platte Basin Roundtable. This report currently relies on the data developed as part of the Statewide Water Supply Initiative (SWSI).
The purpose of this Manual is to provide guidance on preparing and processing documents that comply with NEPA and other applicable state and federal environmental laws affecting transportation projects in Colorado. This Manual provides references and links to related federal and state laws, executive orders, regulations, and policies. It also provides "best practice" examples for various compliance processes where appropriate. It is intended that CDOT staff, local agency representatives, and consultants use this Manual to implement NEPA in an effective manner, producing more consistent, improved environmental documents that decision-makers may use to make well-informed transportation decisions.
