Category: Water

In Colorado’s San Luis Valley, what happened in Crowley County is something of a ghost story.—Cloe Dickson

Posted on by ucross-admin

The two communities are not close, at least not geographically. From Alamosa County, the largest city in the San Luis Valley, Crowley County’s namesake town lies some 150 miles to the southeast. La Veta Pass, the route of the old Denver Rio Grande Railroad, offers east-west access through the magnificent Sangre de Cristo mountains, whose Read more about In Colorado’s San Luis Valley, what happened in Crowley County is something of a ghost story.—Cloe Dickson[…]

Behind the scenes of LA’s most ambitious water resiliency effort: The Safe, Clean, Water Program—Ryanna Fossum

Posted on by Meghanlata Gupta

Over three years have passed since voters approved Measure W in 2018 to increase water supply, improve water quality, and provide overall community benefits to Los Angeles County.  Now approaching its third funding cycle, the Safe Clean Water Program (SCWP) is confronting more questions than ever about how to invest in the region’s water future.  Read more about Behind the scenes of LA’s most ambitious water resiliency effort: The Safe, Clean, Water Program—Ryanna Fossum[…]

Perceptions of Water Export in Colorado’s San Luis Valley

Posted on by ucross-admin

Cloe will be spending the summer in Alamosa, Colorado, where she is conducting independently-led research on the San Luis Valley’s response to past and ongoing attempts to export water out of the region. The San Luis Valley is a high alpine desert in southern Colorado known for its long and enduring agricultural tradition and as Read more about Perceptions of Water Export in Colorado’s San Luis Valley[…]

Community-led water resilience in the Los Angeles River Watershed

Posted on by ucross-admin

Ryanna is supporting the Council for Watershed Health (CWH) in promoting integrated regional watershed management in the greater Los Angeles region. Her projects include supporting Watershed Coordinators with the Safe Clean Water Program, an initiative that captures and cleans stormwater while generating new opportunities for open space preservation. Ryanna is also conducting water sampling and Read more about Community-led water resilience in the Los Angeles River Watershed[…]

Trouble in Paradise: Native Fish Entrainment in the Ditches of Jackson Hole, WY—Bryce Powell

Posted on by ucross-admin

The words “irrigation canal” conjure images of concrete systems and dirty water, but in Jackson, Wyoming, everything is touched by the finger of King Midas—at least upon first glance. Beneath a backdrop of golden fields, snow-capped peaks, grazing elk, and bright blue skies, you are liable to mistake irrigation canals for spring-fed creeks: cold, clear, Read more about Trouble in Paradise: Native Fish Entrainment in the Ditches of Jackson Hole, WY—Bryce Powell[…]

Stillwater-Rosebud Water Quality Initiative

Posted on by ucross-admin

Our team is working to design and deploy a portfolio of GIS tools for the Stillwater Valley Watershed Council, focusing specifically on the Rosebud Creek. In its headwaters, the Rosebud Creek is a designated National Wild and Scenic River. Land use in the lower reaches of the Rosebud Creek’s riparian corridor has gradually transformed in Read more about Stillwater-Rosebud Water Quality Initiative[…]

Work is Flowing for the Rosebud Creek Team—Katherine Tucker

Posted on by ucross-admin

For a few hours every week, I get to escape the hustle and stress of graduate school and virtually explore the beautiful Stillwater Valley in rural south-central Montana, which is home to the Rosebud Creek, the subject of my Ucross High Plains Stewardship Initiative Research Project. In partnership with the Stillwater Valley Watershed Council and Read more about Work is Flowing for the Rosebud Creek Team—Katherine Tucker[…]

Computer Simulations and Soil Texture — Jon Michel

Posted on by ucross-admin

This summer, I worked with computer simulations to determine if soil texture was currently an important factor in competition between sagebrush and bunchgrasses. In the present scenario, it was determined to not have a significant effect. Currently, I’m studying how this effect changes as climate change progresses, and it looks like it could start to Read more about Computer Simulations and Soil Texture — Jon Michel[…]

A Win for Science and Conservation: Protecting Research in Gothic, Colorado with a Conservation Easement — Margot Buckelew and Abbey Warner

Posted on by ucross-admin

Margot Buckelew and Abbey Warner, 2020 Western Resources Fellows with UHPSI at YSE, contributed to western conservation efforts this summer by lending their skills and support to two Colorado-based conservation organizations. Margot’s field research experience and ability to think critically allowed her to support a research team and analyze in-stream flow water rights for the Read more about A Win for Science and Conservation: Protecting Research in Gothic, Colorado with a Conservation Easement — Margot Buckelew and Abbey Warner[…]

Now Hiring Students and Open House

Posted on by Downey, Michelle

Ucross High Plain Stewardship Initiative (UHPSI) is now HIRING graduate and undergraduate students enrolled in courses to work as research assistants or speaker coordinators during the academic year (September/Oct 2020– May 2021). Projects focus on applied conservation and stewardship issues in the West and collaborate with western partners. All work will be completed remotely.  Information on how to apply and projects Read more about Now Hiring Students and Open House[…]

A River Saved: Yampa, Water, Energy, and Climate Change — Humna Sharif

Posted on by ucross-admin

The life of the Yampa River has many important lessons, it remains the wildest tributary to the Colorado River system and makes up a significant share of the Upper Basin’s water flows. The Yampa River provides a 3rd of flows to the Green River, which is the largest tributary to the Colorado River. With the Read more about A River Saved: Yampa, Water, Energy, and Climate Change — Humna Sharif[…]

Large landscapes Need Large-Scale Collaboration: Efforts to protect ecosystem diversity in the vast American West—Margot Buckelew

Posted on by ucross-admin

Western landscapes create a set of unique challenges for natural resource managers because the ecosystems cover a vast area of land and include diverse environmental conditions. For example, alpine ecosystems have short growing seasons, grasslands are dry and turn fierce in the winters, and wildfires blaze through western forests seasonally. In addition, the species found Read more about Large landscapes Need Large-Scale Collaboration: Efforts to protect ecosystem diversity in the vast American West—Margot Buckelew[…]

Improving Aquatic Habitat Connectivity in the Snake River Headwaters

Posted on by Meghanlata Gupta

Bryce is the Conservation Intern for Trout Unlimited’s Snake River Headwaters Initiative, a project in partnership with Wyoming Game and Fish Department, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, local governments, and various non-profit organizations. By measuring fish entrainment rates in agricultural diversions from the Snake River and its tributaries, surveying barriers to fish migration, and engaging Read more about Improving Aquatic Habitat Connectivity in the Snake River Headwaters[…]

Land Trusts and Water Conservation

Posted on by Meghanlata Gupta

Abbey is working with the nonprofit land trust Colorado Open Lands to learn about private land conservation in the West as a Summer Conservation Fellow. She is assisting with conservation and stewardship activities such as monitoring conservation easements from satellite imagery, landowner outreach, and researching innovative methods of water conservation. The primary focus of her Read more about Land Trusts and Water Conservation[…]

Non-Consumptive Water Rights as a Landscape Conservation Tool

Posted on by Meghanlata Gupta

Margot’s independent policy analysis investigates the governance structures in Colorado that allowed non-consumptive water rights to be claimed by private entities and how this has impacted the regional landscape. Non-consumptive, or in-stream water rights, ensure that at the location where the rights are claimed, the amount of water will not change in quality or quantity Read more about Non-Consumptive Water Rights as a Landscape Conservation Tool[…]