Sangre de Cristo RC&D

Sangre de Cristo RC&D Area
200 S. Santa Fe Ave.
Pueblo, CO 81003
Phone: 719.543.8386
FAX: 719.545.4835

Mission Statement

The Sangre de Cristo RC&D Council, through strong partnerships, will carry out a results oriented, locally directed program to encourage and improve the economic and social well-being of individuals and communities, and will promote responsible use and enhancement of our natural resources in south central Colorado.

The Sangre de Cristo Resource Conservation and Development (RC&D) Council was organized in 1969 and expanded in 1973. The Council incorporated and became a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization in 1987. The Council's goals include historic preservation, economic development to achieve a diversified economy, healthy and productive natural resources, wisely managed water resources, coordinated planning, and cooperation among a diverse public.

Sangre de Cristo RC&D Projects

The RC&D Council provides coordination and fiscal management for the Upper Arkansas Regional Weed Management Cooperative (UARWMC.) The UARWMC's purpose is to expand the capacity of local weed management programs and promote weed management across jurisdictional boundaries. The cooperative operates on a regional basis within eight counties of the watershed: Chaffee, Custer, Fremont, Lake, Huerfano, Park, Pueblo and Teller. Partners in the cooperative include private landowners, and local, state, and federal governments that have weed management responsibilities within the region.

The UARWMC's partners developed a regional strategic weed management plan for the Upper Arkansas Watershed and have worked together for the past four years to implement coordinated planning and mapping, targeted weed management, and education. The activities of the Cooperative are funded in part by grants from the Colorado Noxious Weed Management Fund and the Colorado State Land Board.

The Council's mobile river model demonstrates the importance and functions of rivers and riparian areas. Easily demonstrated is the connection between surface and ground water, effects of land use and structures on river systems, and how wetlands, aquifers, floodplains, and deltas are formed. This popular educational tool for teaching river dynamics to children and adults has been in continuous use at county fairs, teacher workshops, schools, and water festivals since its construction. The project was funded by grants from the Bureau of Reclamation and Turkey Creek Conservation District, with additional funding provided by the Natural Resources Conservation Service. The Pueblo County High School Agricultural Education class constructed the 5-ft. by 10-ft. trailer mounted model.

Upper Arkansas Watershed Council

The RC&D Council provides coordination, and is the fiscal agent for the Upper Arkansas Watershed Council. The Watershed Council's goals are expressed in its mission statement: "The Upper Arkansas Watershed Council, as representatives of interested parties, will foster improved communication, collaboration, education and scientific understanding, and will develop strategies and make recommendations to conserve, protect and enhance watershed natural resources for the use and enjoyment of present and future generations."

The Council regularly sponsors educational Water Forums and Water Leader Seminars. Members and guests also share their knowledge and expertise at quarterly meetings held throughout the upper river basin. The Council's Leadership Committee meets on a regular basis to help plan and coordinate Council activities. The watershed council's mission statement, charter, meeting memories, and other information can be found on its web site at www.uawc.org

The RC&D Council partners with a variety of agencies, private businesses and organizations who are working to improve forest health and reduce wildfire risk by developing economic uses and markets for under-utilized forest resources in the Sangre de Cristo RC&D Area. Two projects are described below.

The Four Corners Sustainable Forests Partnership awarded a grant to the RC&D Council for construction of a demonstration roundwood pavilion in the Westcliffe Town Park. The project, a partnership between the Four Corners Sustainable Forests Partnership, RC&D Council, Town of Westcliffe, Greenleaf Forestry & Wood Products, Inc., Gilchrist Engineering, and the U.S. Forest Products Laboratory demonstrates innovative building construction using small diameter roundwood. The pavilion is one of several innovative projects in the western United States to demonstrate building construction using small, 6-inch diameter and less roundwood (wood that has not been made into a square such as a 2x4 or 6x6.) Small diameter trees (3-8") make up a large percentage of the available wood supply in forests throughout the west. They are the least economically feasible to remove from forests. Expanding markets for this type of material would provide economic incentives for its removal, which is needed to improve forest health and to reduce wildfire risk.

The Culebra Range Community Coalition (CRCC), represents diverse interests whose purpose is to evaluate conditions, consider issues, and recommend courses of action to help develop science-based forest management practices and economic markets for forest products in the southern Sangre de Cristo Mountains of Colorado and Northern New Mexico. At monthly meetings, the Coalition considers various market alternatives for materials removed from the forest to improve forest health and wildlife habitat and reduce the risk of wildfire damage. The Coalition conducted a forest thinning and chipping demonstration project to encourage private forest landowners to manage forests for these purposes.

The RC&D Council sponsored a grant from the U.S. Forest Service for the Coalition to hold a wildfire hazard workshop. The purpose of the workshop was to create awareness and educate area residents and forest landowners about the existing and increasing potential for catastrophic wildfire and to broaden the base of support for the CRCC. The CRCC is the foundation for a community-based effort to develop long-term solutions to improve forest health and wildlife habitat and reduce the risk of wildfire by establishing an industry that can economically utilize the wood produced in fuel reduction treatments.

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