A group of hikers gathered outdoors in a forested area under a partly cloudy sky, with mountain terrain in the background. One person in the foreground is wearing a wide-brimmed white hat and a teal jacket, with a backpack. Other hikers are listening to a woman speaker, some wearing hats and sunglasses.

What We Do

The Need

Fire is essential in Western forests – it keeps forests healthy by reducing vegetation density, recycling nutrients, and helps maintain wildlife habitat. But, for over a century, we have excluded it from our forests, leaving behind a legacy of overly dense forests that help fuel high-intensity wildfires that damage communities and the water supply. In the past two decades, wildfires have gotten larger and much more damaging.

Forest managers have been working for more than a decade to restore forests to their historical densities, primarily by cutting trees. But this work has often been small in size and scattered across the landscape. The work to date has simply not been big enough to match the size and intensities of the wildfires we have experienced recently. We need a solution that can greatly increase the pace and scale of restoration. That solution is putting fire to work for us.

We Are Working To

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Build a Network

Build a network of organizations to collaboratively identify strategic areas and plan Fireshed efforts.

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Secure Funding

Identify, cultivate, and sustain diverse funding sources to support implementation.

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Increase Understanding

Increase understanding of, and support for, active wildland fire risk management activities at the landscape scale.

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Implement Treatments

Coordinate and build local capacity to implement prescribed fire and other treatments at landscape scales.

What Does Success Look Like?

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Conduct analysis, planning and outreach

to facilitate managing wildfires for ecological benefit when conditions allow.

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Increase local capacity for prescribed fire,

including staffing, agreements & funding, that results in more acreage treated.

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Implement treatments in strategic priority areas

using a combination of mechanical, manual, and prescribed fire methods.

Mission

To create resilient landscapes by facilitating an increase in the pace and scale of not only mechanical fuel reduction methods but also prescribed fires and strategically managed wildland fires across jurisdictional boundaries.

Vision

Northern Colorado watersheds that can support wildfires without causing long term damage to watershed services and communities.

History of the NoCo Fireshed

2017

Early leaders laid the groundwork for the NoCo Fireshed, building a shared vision for a more collaborative approach to wildfire resilience. The initial Fireshed concept focused solely on Larimer County geography before later expanding into a broader all-lands strategy in future years.

Collaborative burn plans are developed for Red Feather North, Magic Feather, and Elkhorn Creek.

2018

Potential Operation Delineations are developed for the Arapaho and Roosevelt National Forests (ARP), the beginning of NCFC’s spatial strategy.

2020

Part-time NCFC coordinator hired to oversee collaborative.

NCFC expands its boundaries beyond Larimer County to include multiple Front Range counties adjacent to the ARP, including Boulder, Gilpin, Clear Creek, and small portions of Weld and Jackson Counties.

Worst wildfire season in CO history. Cameron Peak, East Troublesome, and Calwood fires solidify the need for a collaborative cross-jurisdictional approach to wildfire resiliency.

Science, Planning, and Adaptive Management Committee established to guide strategy for NoCo Fireshed.

The NCFC Collaborative Framework is developed to guide governance processes and protocols.

2021

Communications Engagement and Outreach committee formalizes to support wildfire resiliency projects.

The NCFC boundary expands to include Rocky Mountain National Park and Grand County including critical water infrastructure for the Front Range.

2022

Arapaho and Roosevelt National Forests and NCFC complete a Quantitative Wildfire Risk Assessment for the NoCo Fireshed geography.

First full-time NCFC coordinator hired to oversee the collaborative.

2023

NCFC Charter adopted laying the foundational document for the operations of the Fireshed.

The Fireshed Fund is established in partnership with the National Forest Foundation and the Arapaho and Roosevelt National Forests to support wildfire resilience projects at the local level. $1.3 Million is given to 10 community partners across Northern Colorado.

Following 2020 fires, PODs network expanded in to include private and county lands, strengthening a collaborative, all-lands strategy.

2024

Alexander Mountain Fire tests previous partner fuel treatments keeping the fire at low to moderate severity.

NCFC Spatial Strategy developed for the northern portion of the Front Range Wildfire Crisis Strategy.

Common Operating Picture developed by Colorado State Forest Service to map planned and in- progress forest health projects.

PODs Dashboard developed to support collaborative planning and progress tracking.

2025

NoCo Fireshed begins to evaluate success and impact of grant projects and partner treatments on risk reduction and forest health in Northern Colorado.