NRCS Colorado Programs and Initiatives - Points and Positions

Colorado Drought Facts & NRCS Recovery Efforts

1. Currently, 75% of the state is considered to be in "extreme" drought, with the remaining portion rated "severe" or "moderate."

2. Snowpack has been below normal each year since 1997 and despite recent snow and rain over much of the state, snowpack remains below normal.

3. The drought is having a major impact on the agricultural economy and the underlying natural resources of the state.  Rangelands are suffering significant losses in production and ground cover.

4. Irrigated and dry croplands suffered significant production losses last year.  In some cases, fields were abandoned and have little or no protective residue cover.

5. Wildfires raged across much of the state in 2002, leaving watersheds vulnerable to floods and threatening municipal and agricultural water supplies.

6. Much of the state depends upon stream flows for irrigation water.

7. Most streams are forecast to carry only 50 to 90 percent of their normal flows.  This means another short water year for irrigated cropland and hayland. 

8. Reservoir storage in Colorado is only 60% of average.  This means that there will be little reservoir water to offset shortages in natural stream flows.

9. NRCS in Colorado has begun preparation for a targeted drought mitigation effort that will:

    * Reduce the impact of the current drought;
    * Accelerate recovery of our natural resources;
    * Prevent avoidable impacts from future droughts.
    

10.  The Natural Resources Conservation Service's (NRCS) work is focused on private lands.  We administer a number of programs that can be directed or redirected to help mitigate the impacts of drought on our landscapes and on our economies. 

11. Millions of dollars have been earmarked through the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) to help private landowners combat the effects of Colorado’s drought conditions.

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Natural Resource Issues and Concerns

Rangeland and Pastureland

There are 25.2 million acres of privately owned grasslands in Colorado.

• Nearly 15 million acres (59%) of the total grassland resource are classified as critically or significantly impacted by drought.

24 million acres of privately owned rangeland.

• 14.5 million acres (60%) is critically or significantly impacted by the drought.

 Nearly 1.2 million acres of pastureland.

• 43% of them normally are under irrigation.

• 444,000 acres are critically or significantly impacted by the drought.

Irrigated Cropland

There are approximately 3.8 million acres of irrigated cropland in Colorado.

• 6% (227,000 acres) are currently estimated to be in "critical" condition—land that  will not have water this year and that has no protective cover of crop residue.

• The Rio Grande, Lower Arkansas, and Gunnison-Dolores Basins are in worse condition, with 15%, 11%, and 10%, respectively, rated as "critical."

 Non-Irrigated Cropland

There are approximately 7.38 million acres of dry cropland in Colorado.

• 10% (742,000 acres) are currently estimated to be in "critical" condition--i.e., they have no protective cover of crop residue.

• The Gunnison-Dolores and North Platte-White-Yampa Basins are in worse condition, with 39% and 19%, respectively, rated as "critical."

• 2002 winter wheat production was the lowest since 1967—down 45% from 2001. 

• Nearly 700,000 acres (almost one-third of all planted acres) was abandoned. 

 Forestland

There are 3.4 million acres of privately owned forestland in the state, 32% of the state's total.

• These lands are managed by over 200,000 individual property owners, as well as state and local agencies.

• Three forest types—Ponderosa Pine, Lodgepole Pine, and Pinyon-Juniper—constitute 1.2 million acres of the total.

• One-half of these forests are considered to be critically stressed by drought and in need of treatment for pest control, fuel reductions, and stand improvement.

• There were 1400 wildfires recorded in 2002 in Colorado.  While 98% of these were quickly controlled, the other 2% raged and burned 380,000 acres.

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Strategies/Actions

Rangeland and Pastureland

Goal:  Protect grassland resources from further degradation and enhance recovery.

Actions:
Help producers to implement prescribed grazing plans suited to their unique conditions.

Assist producers to implement Rapid Resource Assessment techniques that they can employ on their own to improve grassland resource monitoring and restocking strategies.

Help producers to make infrastructure improvements, e.g., livestock watering facilities (wells, tanks, pipelines), fencing to facilitate rotational grazing systems.

Target financial assistance to the most severely impacted grasslands.

Re-seed damaged lands where appropriate.

Help producers enhance wildlife habitat.

Irrigated Cropland

Goal:  Protect the soil resource and maximize the beneficial use of water.

Actions:
Help producers to improve their irrigation water management efficiencies.

Help upgrade irrigation infrastructure where appropriate.

Assist producers in planning cropping sequences that promote soil health, plant vigor, and water conservation.

Help producers to implement conservation tillage.

Support planting temporary cover crops (e.g. small grains) that may provide temporary livestock foraging opportunities, in addition to soil protection--especially in temporarily de-watered areas.

Non-irrigated (Dry) Cropland

Goal:  Protect and improve the soil resource.

Actions:
Help producers to implement conservation tillage, including no-till.

Help producers to plan and install terrace systems for soil and water conservation.  

Forestland

Goal:  Protect our forest resources.

Actions:
Provide increased technical assistance to landowners/managers.

Promote Forest Stand Improvement, with slash removal for fuels reduction and insect control.

Install fire breaks.

Implement Pest Management for insect and weed control.

Promote Tree/Shrub Establishment for reforestation.

Encourage Prescribed Burning for fuels reduction in partnership with the Colorado State Forest Service.

Other Strategies/Actions

Upgrade all SNOTEL sites

Upgrade all SNOTEL sites with scan sensors (snow depth, soil moisture/temperature @ 3 depths, wind speed/direction) to provide fire weather data to land management agencies, improve soil moisture forecast data, and implement advanced simulation models in forecasting.

Collaborate on Fire Issues

Collaborate with the Colorado State Forest Service and Federal land management agencies on forest and rangeland fire issues.

Assist in reseeding efforts to protect the watersheds of municipal water supplies.

Implement an aggressive information and education action plan

Implement an aggressive information and education action plan to inform landowners about the programs and technical assistance available to them, and to educate them about the things they can do to address their own unique situations.

Collaborae for Xeriscapeing

Collaborate with state and local public and private organizations to promote water conserving landscaping, such as Xeriscape. 

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