The High Park Restoration Coalition (HPRC) has announced a list of spring and summer volunteer events to help restore areas burned by the High Park Fire. These projects will dramatically help to protect human health, infrastructure and the environment by promoting the speedy recovery of forests and waterways severely damaged by last year’s wildfires.
Five public restoration events are scheduled for May and two for June, though many more will arise later in the summer and fall. A list of upcoming projects can be found online. Volunteer opportunities include spreading native seed, laying down straw mulch and installing erosion control structures. The goals of these activities are to reduce soil erosion that can cause mudslides and rockslides, which impact the quality of our drinking water supply.
Last year, HPRC member organizations held 14 restoration events and worked with 785 volunteers to treat 185 acres of land burned by the High Park and Hewlett Gulch fires.
The Members of HPRC have already completed three volunteer projects this spring in parts of Rist Canyon burned by the High Park Fire. In addition to work on private lands, HPRC Members completed post-fire treatments on public lands in the Canyon Lakes Ranger District of the Arapaho-Roosevelt National Forest in response to the Hewlett Gulch Fire.
It is expected that more projects will be scheduled on Forest Service land for later in the summer or fall after the Forest Service has completed aerial mulching activities.
The HPRC is providing many great opportunities to help conserve and protect our beautiful outdoors. Anyone interested in volunteering is encouraged to register online for a list of current restoration events.