Introduction and Purpose of Project

The Red Feather Lakes Area Wildfire Defense Project, jointly administered by Larimer County Office of Emergency Management and Coalition for the Poudre River Watershed and funded through the US Department of Agriculture Community Wildfire Defense Grant (CWDG) program, focuses on four main objectives to improve wildfire readiness:

1.     Reduction of hazardous fuels in open space, along roadways, and on private properties

2.     Reduction of risk to properties through hazard assessment and defensible space treatments

3.     Improved evacuation plans, procedures, and routes

4.     Enhanced community capacity to handle woody biomass generated during these treatments

The Lions Creek Greenspace project was prioritized by the Glacier View Community Wildfire Protection Plan and Glacier View Fire Protection District and will be implemented by the Larimer County Conservation Corps Strike Team. This project will address objectives 1, and 4 above.

Project Area & Description

The project area, located within the Glacier View Fire Protection District, is a four-acre community-owned greenspace parcel located between four private parcels and USFS land off of Guardian Peak Drive southeast of CR 74E (see map). The forest type in the treatment area is dry mixed-conifer, consisting of mostly dense, mixed-age Douglas-fir with pockets of ponderosa pine, and juniper as a significant mid/understory component. The greenspace begins flat with an open meadow in its southeast section near the access point before sloping steeply down into a canyon to the west with a creek flowing through the bottom out to the USFS land west of the parcel. Near the meadow there is a stand of ponderosa pine saplings that are heavily infested with dwarf mistletoe. The canopy is open in the meadow and becomes increasingly closed as the area slopes downward to the west resulting in an almost fully-closed canopy in about 2/3 of the space. Along the creek, there is some riparian vegetation, primarily willow and a small aspen stand. The area is still largely dominated by Douglas-fir and ponderosa pine.

The Glacier View community has identified this community-owned greenspace as a priority area for treatment and adjacent landowners have allowed access to the space through their properties. Right-of-entry forms are in place for the greenspace parcel and adjacent landowners to allow access for treatment.

Prescription Objectives

This project will address fuels in the greenspace to serve as a potential fuel break and reduce wildfire intensity moving west to east should a wildfire approach the community from untreated USFS land that borders this parcel to the west.  Additionally, treatments will seek to promote a more open forest structure that favors ponderosa pine in the future and increases tree vigor by reducing competition for resources as well as stopping the potential spread of dwarf mistletoe by culling the trees that are already infected.

Desired Future Conditions

The desired future condition of the project area post-treatment is a greenspace with ladder fuels eliminated and increased canopy spacing throughout, aiming for at least 10 ft of horizontal crown spacing where possible between individual trees (or greater crown spacing between groups of trees). The treatment area should be absent of juniper, Douglas-fir saplings, and all ponderosa pine saplings infested with dwarf mistletoe. The overall ratio of Douglas-fir to ponderosa pine should be shifted toward ponderosa pine to promote future recruitment, but large Douglas-firs will remain on the landscape as they pose minimal fire risk, and the shaded nature of the side is characteristic of favoring a Douglas-fir component.

Treatment Prescription  

  • Cut all juniper within the marked boundary

  • Cut all trees within the boundary that are NOT marked with blue paint or blue flagging

  • Stumps should be left as low as possible (6” max height), and flat-topped 

  • Do not cut aspen

  • Do not cut willow except as necessary for access to the unit

  • Do not leave any cut material within the roadway

  • Remove all cut material from the project area. Pile slash (all material <6” in diameter) in a large, accessible pile in the designated community biomass location with access for heavy equipment for removal

  • Stack all firewood (all material >6” diameter) in manageable (4’ to 6’ length) sections, neatly at the designated biomass location, but outside of the right of way and allowing for heavy equipment access to the slash pile

The area west of the line on the map is below a slope break in the treatment unit, making removal of material from the area below the line very difficult. Treatment west of/below the line on the map should be discussed in detail with the Glacier View Fire Protection District BEFORE any cutting below this line.

If it is decided that treatment should occur west of the line, slash should be piled neatly in approximately 8ft x 8ft x 8ft burn piles outside of the dripline of canopy trees and arranged in a way that they are not in a continuous line up the canyon chimney. Firewood should be removed from the unit, even though this will involve immense effort. Burning of remaining slash piles is outside the current scope of this treatment and will need to be coordinated with the fire district at a future time. At this time, treatment should only occur east of the line on the map where removal of all cut material is possible and indicated.

Project Timeline: Winter/Spring 2026

Total Acres Treated: 1.3

Project Collaborators

  • Coalition for the Poudre River Watershed (CPRW)

  • Larimer County Office of Emergency Management

  • Larimer County Sheriff’s Office Emergency Services

  • Larimer County Conservation Corps (LCCC) Strike Team

  • Livermore Fire Protection District

  • Meadow Creek Association

Funders

  • U.S. Forest Service - Community Wildfire Defense Grant (CWDG)

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