Stream restoration volunteer monitoring program internship
Warner College of Natural Resources
Ecosystem Science and Sustainability
Summit
County
(Grand)
- Natural Resources
- Equal time spent on-campus and in the field
Primary Topic:
Natural Resources
Other Topics:
4-H & Youth, Community & Economic Development, DEI
Internship Overview:
WHY
Water in the west is an increasingly critical and important issue. Efficient water conservation is needed given continued drought and drought conditions that are likely to be exacerbated by climate change. The Colorado River headwaters watershed and related tributaries are an important and vital source of freshwater for this river system. Without effective water conservation in critical headwaters systems, declines of water availability in these and downstream systems are likely to continue. Fortunately, novel strategies of retaining water, slowing water flow to historical patterns, and regulating the timing of water releases are being tested and evaluated that may serve as ecological uplifts. These strategies include the creation of “Beaver Dam Analogs (or BDAs)” as structures installed for these purposes. However, we do not know which stream reaches are most suitable for installation of these structures and we lack baseline data about current hydrologic conditions throughout the Colorado river headwaters system. Furthermore, we do not have enough human monitoring capacity to monitor hydrological conditions throughout the Colorado river headwaters system in Summit and Grand County. We cannot afford to pay additional professional staff for such critical monitoring needed to gather baseline data and keep track of conditions over time. Long term monitoring is needed to assess the conditions prior to implementation and the effectiveness of installed BDAs after their installation through data comparisons over time
WHAT
We propose to establish the Beaver Effectiveness Stream Team (BEST) program as a multi-phase long-term science monitoring program in Summit and Grand counties. Specifically, we propose this internship opportunity to design and develop a first year pilot of this long term program.
Phase 1: This crucial phase involves initial work in the Lower Blue River Valley led by our partner Friends of the Lower Blue River, a non-profit based in Summit County. Tom Koehler, the Director of Climate Action will lead coordination and facilitation efforts with selected consultants and the CSU student intern. The goals for summer 2024 will be to refine the existing Beaver Restoration Assessment Tool (BRAT) dataset through robust geospatial analysis and focused field verification to identify early opportunities for Wetland for Wildlife ecological uplifts.
In this phase, during early summer, a core group of dedicated volunteers will be cultivated through FOLBRs outreach in the community and trained to conduct high quality stream and wetland BRAT verification assessments with help and coordination from the CSU intern. This refinement will allow us to increase the quantity and quality of site visits throughout the summer and autumn.
Later in the summer potential project sites will have been identified for further examination by agencies such as CPW, USFS, Summit County and Private Landowners. Our resources at CSU (including our summer intern) will significantly bolster these efforts in Phase I and help to launch and grow this program as it morphs into Phase 2.
Phase 2: This will actually be occurring coincident with Phase 1 as public outreach is increased and volunteers are increasing through training via tutorials and robust field work led by FOLBRs’ Director of Climate Action and our partner consultants.
Throughout the Autumn 2024, data will be synthesized from prior season work and planning and design for implementation projects will be fully underway. Our resources will allow FOLBR to more fully coordinate these projects using Beaver Dam Analogs as an ecological uplift tool.
Phase 3: Once we have proof of concept and implementation/activation of core volunteer groups, we can increase the scope to larger numbers of participants That will allow for more widespread baseline condition field validation, more identification and prioritization of promising implementation sites, and more long-term monitoring of pre- and post-ecological uplift / BDA implementation effectiveness.
Ultimately, our long-term goal is for this program to engage a healthy increase in volunteer hours each year, thereby increasing the breadth and depth of our program. However, we will start small and focus on 5-10 volunteers for summer 2024. With trained volunteers, we will be able to refine currently available data related to baseline hydrology as produced and made available by the Colorado Natural Heritage Program (CNHP), prioritize BDA ecological uplift structure locations, and assess their effectiveness, thus guiding evidence-based stream restoration decisions while educating those involved as participants.
HOW
Partner with Friends of the Lower Blue River, a non-profit in Summit County by providing a 9 week summer and early autumn internship to bolster current and future efforts for wetland scoping and data collecting.
The internship will be instrumental in providing FOLBR and CSU with significant data and will allow the intern to be involved with real regular field work throughout the summer and autumn. This involvement will provide opportunities to learn about volunteer recruitment, volunteer training, field data collection, and program coordination.
Water in the west is an increasingly critical and important issue. Efficient water conservation is needed given continued drought and drought conditions that are likely to be exacerbated by climate change. The Colorado River headwaters watershed and related tributaries are an important and vital source of freshwater for this river system. Without effective water conservation in critical headwaters systems, declines of water availability in these and downstream systems are likely to continue. Fortunately, novel strategies of retaining water, slowing water flow to historical patterns, and regulating the timing of water releases are being tested and evaluated that may serve as ecological uplifts. These strategies include the creation of “Beaver Dam Analogs (or BDAs)” as structures installed for these purposes. However, we do not know which stream reaches are most suitable for installation of these structures and we lack baseline data about current hydrologic conditions throughout the Colorado river headwaters system. Furthermore, we do not have enough human monitoring capacity to monitor hydrological conditions throughout the Colorado river headwaters system in Summit and Grand County. We cannot afford to pay additional professional staff for such critical monitoring needed to gather baseline data and keep track of conditions over time. Long term monitoring is needed to assess the conditions prior to implementation and the effectiveness of installed BDAs after their installation through data comparisons over time
WHAT
We propose to establish the Beaver Effectiveness Stream Team (BEST) program as a multi-phase long-term science monitoring program in Summit and Grand counties. Specifically, we propose this internship opportunity to design and develop a first year pilot of this long term program.
Phase 1: This crucial phase involves initial work in the Lower Blue River Valley led by our partner Friends of the Lower Blue River, a non-profit based in Summit County. Tom Koehler, the Director of Climate Action will lead coordination and facilitation efforts with selected consultants and the CSU student intern. The goals for summer 2024 will be to refine the existing Beaver Restoration Assessment Tool (BRAT) dataset through robust geospatial analysis and focused field verification to identify early opportunities for Wetland for Wildlife ecological uplifts.
In this phase, during early summer, a core group of dedicated volunteers will be cultivated through FOLBRs outreach in the community and trained to conduct high quality stream and wetland BRAT verification assessments with help and coordination from the CSU intern. This refinement will allow us to increase the quantity and quality of site visits throughout the summer and autumn.
Later in the summer potential project sites will have been identified for further examination by agencies such as CPW, USFS, Summit County and Private Landowners. Our resources at CSU (including our summer intern) will significantly bolster these efforts in Phase I and help to launch and grow this program as it morphs into Phase 2.
Phase 2: This will actually be occurring coincident with Phase 1 as public outreach is increased and volunteers are increasing through training via tutorials and robust field work led by FOLBRs’ Director of Climate Action and our partner consultants.
Throughout the Autumn 2024, data will be synthesized from prior season work and planning and design for implementation projects will be fully underway. Our resources will allow FOLBR to more fully coordinate these projects using Beaver Dam Analogs as an ecological uplift tool.
Phase 3: Once we have proof of concept and implementation/activation of core volunteer groups, we can increase the scope to larger numbers of participants That will allow for more widespread baseline condition field validation, more identification and prioritization of promising implementation sites, and more long-term monitoring of pre- and post-ecological uplift / BDA implementation effectiveness.
Ultimately, our long-term goal is for this program to engage a healthy increase in volunteer hours each year, thereby increasing the breadth and depth of our program. However, we will start small and focus on 5-10 volunteers for summer 2024. With trained volunteers, we will be able to refine currently available data related to baseline hydrology as produced and made available by the Colorado Natural Heritage Program (CNHP), prioritize BDA ecological uplift structure locations, and assess their effectiveness, thus guiding evidence-based stream restoration decisions while educating those involved as participants.
HOW
Partner with Friends of the Lower Blue River, a non-profit in Summit County by providing a 9 week summer and early autumn internship to bolster current and future efforts for wetland scoping and data collecting.
The internship will be instrumental in providing FOLBR and CSU with significant data and will allow the intern to be involved with real regular field work throughout the summer and autumn. This involvement will provide opportunities to learn about volunteer recruitment, volunteer training, field data collection, and program coordination.
Goals, Scope and Objectives:
Scope
By the end of summer, our goal is to have an established group of well trained volunteers who provide data to be used for identifying areas for BDA implementation. We will be at the point where we can consider increasing the number of volunteers working on this project to monitor more areas of the Colorado river headwaters system. This will provide accurate and reliable data to be compared with our initial knowledge we entered this project with prior to starting the project.
Goals & Objectives (SMART – specific measurable, attainable, realistic, time bound) are below:
Recruit 5 to 10 dedicated volunteers willing to monitor stream conditions summer 2024
Establish volunteer stream monitoring protocol
Train volunteers on monitoring protocol established
Coordinate / orchestrate volunteer monitoring of 3 monitoring observations at 2 sites each
Compile monitoring data and use the data to identify and prioritize early opportunities for Wetland for Wildlife ecological uplifts (and/or BDAs)
Objectives
Recruit 5 to 10 dedicated volunteers
Ensure volunteers monitor 2 sites each, 3 times over summer (30 to 60 total observations)
Analyze and summarize data for use in identifying priority sites
The selected intern will leave this opportunity with a strong understanding of water conservation in vital headwater systems, strategies used to regulate these systems, and the effectiveness of participatory science. The intern will develop professional qualities that will set them ahead as future work and educational opportunities arise.
By the end of summer, our goal is to have an established group of well trained volunteers who provide data to be used for identifying areas for BDA implementation. We will be at the point where we can consider increasing the number of volunteers working on this project to monitor more areas of the Colorado river headwaters system. This will provide accurate and reliable data to be compared with our initial knowledge we entered this project with prior to starting the project.
Goals & Objectives (SMART – specific measurable, attainable, realistic, time bound) are below:
Recruit 5 to 10 dedicated volunteers willing to monitor stream conditions summer 2024
Establish volunteer stream monitoring protocol
Train volunteers on monitoring protocol established
Coordinate / orchestrate volunteer monitoring of 3 monitoring observations at 2 sites each
Compile monitoring data and use the data to identify and prioritize early opportunities for Wetland for Wildlife ecological uplifts (and/or BDAs)
Objectives
Recruit 5 to 10 dedicated volunteers
Ensure volunteers monitor 2 sites each, 3 times over summer (30 to 60 total observations)
Analyze and summarize data for use in identifying priority sites
The selected intern will leave this opportunity with a strong understanding of water conservation in vital headwater systems, strategies used to regulate these systems, and the effectiveness of participatory science. The intern will develop professional qualities that will set them ahead as future work and educational opportunities arise.
With which stakeholder group(s) will the intern work?
Friends of the Lower Blue River (FOLBR)
Conservation and Environmental Groups within Summit County who have a working relationship with FOLBR and can be brought in through the Summit County Outdoor Coalition.
UC WET
Conservation and Environmental Groups within Summit County who have a working relationship with FOLBR and can be brought in through the Summit County Outdoor Coalition.
UC WET
What student learning outcomes do you anticipate and what are the opportunities for professional development?
We expect the student intern to learn the following core skills:
Organizational skill development
Analytical skill development
Project process and framework development
Project management, leadership and communications skills
Managing and coordinating volunteers
Conducting field hydrology volunteer trainings
Creating and designing volunteer training manuals
The theory and practice of participatory science
Geographic Information Systems (GIS) skills
Opportunities for professional development will include mentorship by the lead mentor (Dr. Newman on use of GIS to make maps as a primary outcome and on the theory and practice of participatory science. The intern will be included in CitSci team meetings throughout the duration of the summer internship providing hands-on exposure to a core team devoted to providing support for participatory science projects globally. The student intern will also gain experiential professional development by participating in training and through mentorship by the second mentor. Opportunities may arise for the intern to present their work at various presentations throughout the summer and into the Fall 2024 semester.
Organizational skill development
Analytical skill development
Project process and framework development
Project management, leadership and communications skills
Managing and coordinating volunteers
Conducting field hydrology volunteer trainings
Creating and designing volunteer training manuals
The theory and practice of participatory science
Geographic Information Systems (GIS) skills
Opportunities for professional development will include mentorship by the lead mentor (Dr. Newman on use of GIS to make maps as a primary outcome and on the theory and practice of participatory science. The intern will be included in CitSci team meetings throughout the duration of the summer internship providing hands-on exposure to a core team devoted to providing support for participatory science projects globally. The student intern will also gain experiential professional development by participating in training and through mentorship by the second mentor. Opportunities may arise for the intern to present their work at various presentations throughout the summer and into the Fall 2024 semester.
