Dec 11 - 5:30pm-7:30pm Mitigation on Tap event at the Dolores River Brewery
Dec 17 - River Watch Collection
Dec 22-Jan 2 MCD office hours limited (call 970-533-7317)
TBA - Forestry Show Me Tour (call Tara 970-880-4474)
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2025 MCD SCHOLARSHIP WINNERS
We are thrilled to announce our 2025 Mancos Conservation District Scholarship winners, Randi Lewis and Lucas Figueroa! This scholarship program was designed to aid deserving members of the Mancos High School graduating class to obtain a post-high school education.
Lucas Figueroa will attend Utah State University Eastern, with a declared major in Aviation Technology - Aviation Management: Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS). Lucas is most interested in careers around agriculture, conservation, and firefighting.
Randi Lewis will attend the University of Wyoming in the fall of 2025. Randi plans to Major in English and Minor in Pre-Law. She plans to continue her education by going to law school She has many goals and plans to work very hard to get the degrees she needs to have a successful career in the field of law.
PLEASE
WELCOME
AARON AND ALEX TO THE MCD!
Aaron is an AmeriCorps member serving at the MCD through the Rural Alliance for Dignity program He spent the last 4 years in the Pacific Northwest, where he obtained his Bachelor of Science degree from the Evergreen State College. Aaron is excited to learn about local ecology in Montezuma County while contributing to conservation. Aaron enjoys going for walks, runs, hikes, and bike rides in his free time.
Alex Aaron
Alex is a Mancos local who went on to receive degrees in Environmental Sustainability and Psychology at Western Colorado University in Gunnison, Colorado Alex is now an AmeriCorps member serving at the MCD through the Rural Alliance for Dignity program.
For the past few years, Alex has been an instructor at Deer Hill Expeditions, a substitute teacher at the Mancos School District, as well as a sawyer for Underwood Forestry. He is excited to build on his educational and conservation experience through his work at MCD In his free time, he enjoys various outdoor activities including backpacking, rafting, rock climbing, trail running, skiing, and biking.
Watershed program
DIVERSION UPGRADES, MEASUREMENT, AND STREAM MANAGEMENT PLAN
MCD has partnered with ditch companies in the Mancos Watershed to support much needed infrastructre upgrades. Through a Bureau of Reclamation WaterSMART Grant, work has begun to improve three diversion structures and provide upgraded measurement devices on ten head gates. The Mancos Watershed Group is also in the final stages of completing the Mancos Watershed Stream Management Plan, which will be finalized and published by the end of 2025!
Forestry Program
RAPTOR SURVEYS, PJ SYMPOSIUM, WRAP
Our forestry program currently has several private lands projects with awarded contracts, and ground work is underway! We have completed over 160 acres of wildfire mitigation to date and have another 176 acres under implementation. Most of our current projects include both wildfire-defensible space around the home and wildfire mitigation treatments on large parcels
The Pinon-Juniper Symposium hosted by the Mancos Conservation District, Dolores Watersheds Collaborative, Wildfire Adapted Partnership, and the Colorado State Forest Service was a great success. The event took place over two days, kicking off with a field trip to Mesa Verde National Park and a visit to a private property in Cedar Mesa Ranches. We had 11 speakers, and over 50 people in attendance.
We plan to offer another similar event next year.
The Mancos Conservation District Forestry Program is hosting the first ever Mitigation on Tap event at the Dolores River Brewery on December 11 2025. Short presentations begin at 5:45pm. Meet other landowners who have recently completed wildfire mitigation projects. th
First Place 200 $
District Conservation Technicians
Our District Conservation Techs (DCTs) played a key role in this fall's fieldwork. They helped collect Macroinvertebrates while continuing our monthly River Watch sampling. They continue to provide their expertise on engineering and design projects and are crucial to MCD's ability to get projects completed.
Mitigation on tap
Mancos Watershed Wildfire Ready Action Plan (WRAP)
Wildfire Ready Action Plans (WRAP)
are part of the Wildfire Ready Watershed program and are meant to help communities assess their watersheds to develop plans for pre- and post- fire mitigation actions. The goal is to improve watersheds to lessen the impact of wildfires to values-at-risk.
Partner updates
SWCD & TNC TOURS
This fall, the Southwestern Water Conservation District (SWCD) held its board meeting in Mancos, with the Mancos Conservation District (MCD) helping to host a tour of local watershed projects The tour showcased years of collaborative work supported by SWCD and partners, including the LOR Foundation, U.S. Forest Service, and Colorado Parks & Wildlife.
Participants visited the upgraded field diversion, where new monitoring technology is tracking fish passage. Antennas placed above and below the diversion record when tagged fish swim across sensors, helping assess how well the redesign supports aquatic life. Funding and installation support came from SWCD and partners.
At the Root & Ratliff diversion, Board Treasurer Wayne Eppich, the ditch rider, shared how upgrades and a new telemetry system are providing real-time flow monitoring and already showing water savings. With support from a Watersmart grant, SWCD and MCD plan to expand these smart systems to 10 more sites in the coming years
Meanwhile, over 60 staff from The Nature Conservancy’s Colorado River Program visited Mancos for their annual retreat. At the Opera House, they heard from local voices including ag producers, Mesa Verde Association, MSI, MCD, and the MLC/UMU Tribe, about the Stream Management Plan, and toured a valley restoration project to see progress firsthand.
fish passage project update
the sheek diversion improvement is nearing completion
The MCD Watershed Program is excited to announce the of the Sheek fish passage project is nearing completion. The project consisted of a new headgate installation, rock grade control structures, and channel shaping to improve irrigation efficiency, while allowing fish to pass in the river.
