A volunteer group promoting quality of life, and the
environment of the Lower Blue River Valley.
The Friends of the Lower Blue River are dedicated to sustaining and protecting the traditional agricultural character, promoting the safety of the residents, livestock and wildlife, and maintaining the environmental integrity of the Lower Blue River Valley through education, collaboration and community involvement.
To sustain and protect the traditional agricultural character, promote the safety of the residents, livestock and wildlife, and maintain the environmental integrity of the Lower Blue River Valley through education, collaboration and community involvement.
Friends of the Lower Blue River is committed to preserving the rich history of the Blue River Valley. Through grant support from the Summit Foundation, we have created this interactive tool that documents and takes you to key points of interest in the Valley. You will see photographs and read about those who came before us. Those who settled this pristine area of Summit and Grand Counties in the 1800’s and the relevance those sites have today. FOLBR invites you to take this journey on our website and discover the treasure, that truly is the Lower Blue River Valley.
Click Here to see History Story Map
Three months after the State Division of Reclamation, Mining and Safety (DRMS) held a series of three public hearings on Peak Ranch Resource, the official ruling has now been issued. The document formally lays out the findings of fact and conclusions of law and order regarding Peak Materials attempt to gain a state permit to mine gravel on the Blue River. The ruling details the unanimous denial of the permit request.
By Lindsey Toomer---Summit Daily
Since a state board denied Peak Materials’ application for a gravel mining permit at the Hillyard property in April, neighbors have been left with many questions about what the property’s future might hold.
Sagebrush covers massive tracts of land in the west and Canada. According to the Intermountain West Joint Venture, it used to cover 247 million acres in the US, though now it is about half that.
This keystone species supports over 350 species, including the adorable pygmy rabbit and charismatic greater sage-grouse. Several bird and mammal species are almost entirely dependent on sagebrush for survival: Gunnison sage-grouse, sage sparrow, Brewer’s sparrow, sage thrasher, pygmy rabbit, and sagebrush vole. (CPW) Colorado Parks and Wildlife
The plant is alive year-round which is important for the sage-grouse as it depends on it for 100% of its winter diet. It also functions as a nurse plant for other plant species, including important livestock forage plants.
Water scarcity is a risk many people and organizations take too lightly, particularly in the West, where we are experiencing megadrought with little end in sight.
A group of climate scientists from UCLA, NASA and Columbia University as recently as 2018 and 2019 studied, among other statistical data, tree rings to help determine soil moisture. They found soil moisture deficits have doubled in the last 22 years.
That does not bode well for many reasons. Landscapes are less drought resilient and more prone to scarring wildfires. The condition perpetuates itself as water flows off, carrying more sediment and leaving parched earth behind.
We all use water as a valuable resource. So do businesses and corporations. I thought I would take a look into the water risks of the corporate world.
As you Sow (https://www.asyousow.org) is a non-profit based in California that does a lot of work on environmental, health and climate change issues. Shareholder advocacy is one tool they utilize and have been reasonably successful.
Our Blue River
Healthy riparian zones serve to capture carbon and thus contribute to fighting global climate change. They are the areas bordering rivers and other bodies of surface water. They provide many environmental and recreational benefits to streams, groundwater, and downstream land areas. Groundwater is usually found at shallower depths in riparian zones than in the surrounding landscape. These areas are visually defined by a greenbelt with a characteristic suite of plants that are adapted to and depend on the shallow water table.
By Meg Soyars: Sky Hi News
The hundreds of thousands of visitors who visit the Kawuneeche Valley of Rocky Mountain National Park each year enjoy the valley’s picturesque meadows and forests beside the winding Colorado River, with elk and moose abundant. What many may not know is that the valley was once home to a thriving beaver population, whose efficiently built dams kept the area covered by water.
Beavers are more than furry animals that love to swim, said Koren Nydic, Chief of Resource Stewardship at RMNP. “Beavers are ecosystem engineers. They raise the water table and connect the river with the floodplain.”
Nydick is responsible for overseeing work on natural and cultural resources, fire management, and more. She is also a member of the Kawuneeche Valley Ecosystem Restoration Collaborative (KVERC), whose mission is to restore the valley to its natural, wetland state. One facet of this mission is bringing back beaver
Tom Koehler: Director of Climate Action
Friends of the Lower Blue River is pleased to announce Tom Koehler is now part of the FOLBR administrative staff, as Director of Climate Action. Friends of the Lower Blue River considers climate action a top priority and Tom has proven to be a tremendous asset in that effort.
FOLBR is currently in its first phase of a Safe Soils/Climate Resiliency Initiative in Summit and Grand Counties. The program is assessing the health of the soil in the Lower Blue River Valley. The research will establish baseline data and recommend improvements to increase our valley’s health and the ability to capture carbon in the environment.
When it comes to transforming their environment, beavers have a lot in common with humans. They clear-cut trees and build dams to block streams, in the process radically altering the world around them. Now, it appears that beavers play a complex role in climate change, too. A new study suggests that beaver dams and the sediments corralled behind them sequester carbon, temporarily keeping greenhouse gases containing the element out of the atmosphere. But when the animals abandon these sites, the carbon leaks back out, contributing to global warming.
Before Europeans settled North America, as many as 400 million beavers inhabited an area covering just over nine-million square miles (about 60% of the continent). The wetlands that form behind their dams, as well as the floodplains that they groom nearby, provide habitat for many creatures. And although many ecologists are familiar with the biodiversity-boosting aspects of beaver activity, fewer are aware of beavers' role in carbon sequestration, says Ellen Wohl, a geoscientist at Colorado State University, Fort Collins.
We Promote environmental integrity in the Blue River Valley
