Colorado's Strategic Wildfire Action Program Marks Five Years, $47 Million Invested to Protect High-Risk Communities

(DENVER) - Today, Governor Jared Polis and the Colorado Department of Natural Resources released the Colorado Strategic Wildfire Action Program (COSWAP) 5-Year Impact Report, highlighting strategic investments in collaborative wildfire mitigation and community resilience on all land ownerships across Colorado since 2021.

Signed into law by Governor Polis following the devastating 2020 wildfire season, COSWAP has evolved from a historic one-time investment into a permanent statewide program supporting collaborative, cross-boundary projects that reduce wildfire risk to communities, watersheds, and critical infrastructure while expanding Colorado's wildfire mitigation and suppression workforce.

Since its launch in 2021, COSWAP has invested more than $47.58 million through 141 grants, supporting 171 communities across 30 counties while demonstrating the value of coordinated, landscape-scale wildfire mitigation. The new report includes project snapshots, highlights and statistics from the program's first five years.

"Five years ago, we made a promise to better protect Coloradans from the growing threat of wildfire. While there is no stopping the increased threat of wildfires in a drier west, this report proves that promise to up our game is being kept. Because of COSWAP, families are safer, our workforce is trained and ready, and the watersheds that sustain our communities are protected for generations to come. By continuing to fund COSWAP, we're not just investing in wildfire mitigation, we're investing in the safety of every Coloradan who calls our state home," said Governor Jared Polis.

Over its first five years, COSWAP has:

• Awarded $47.58 million through 141 grants across Colorado.
• Supported projects benefiting 171 communities in 30 counties.
• Treated or funded treatment on 16,473 acres of high-priority landscapes across federal, state, Tribal, county, municipal, and private lands.
• Leveraged an additional $13.79 million in partner matching funds.
• Funded 112 workforce development projects, providing training and hands-on experience for 753 individuals entering Colorado's wildfire mitigation and suppression workforce.

"When we created COSWAP, we knew Colorado needed a new approach to wildfire mitigation that could bring communities, landowners and partners together to address wildfire risk across the state," said Senator Snyder, sponsor of SB21-258, which established the Colorado Strategic Wildfire Action Program. "Five years later, we're seeing the results of that investment firsthand, including in communities across my district. COSWAP has helped put people to work, improve forest health, protect critical watersheds and infrastructure, and make our communities more resilient to wildfire."

"Five years ago, Colorado witnessed one of its most devastating fire seasons on record and we knew Colorado needed to do more to reduce the impact of wildfires and improve forest health, creating the Colorado Strategic Wildfire Action Program. We realized that wildfires do not recognize landownership boundaries, and neither could our mitigation efforts," said Dan Gibbs, Executive Director of the Colorado Department of Natural Resources. "Today, COSWAP is known for its flexibility, working with communities and grantees from large scale landscapes to individual neighborhoods, as well as its on-the-ground impactful projects and successful workforce development. While Colorado remains just one lightning strike or one unattended campfire from its next mega-fire, COSWAP will continue with its successful mission to work bigger, faster, and to collaborate across jurisdictions to protect life, property and critical infrastructure for Colorado's communities and natural resources."

The report highlights the successes of COSWAP's two funding programs:

Landscape Resilience Investment provides grants ranging from $500,000 to $1 million for high-priority, cross-boundary fuels reduction projects that protect communities, watersheds, and critical infrastructure. Through this program, COSWAP also partners with the Colorado Water Conservation Board's Wildfire Ready Watersheds program to proactively safeguard critical drinking water supplies.

Workforce Development grants strengthen Colorado's wildfire mitigation and suppression workforce by partnering with the Colorado Youth Corps Association, independent conservation corps, and the Colorado Department of Corrections' State Wildland Inmate Fire Teams (SWIFT). These partnerships combine meaningful community risk reduction with technical training, certifications, and career development opportunities that expand the state's long-term mitigation and suppression capacity.

The report showcases projects demonstrating the program's statewide impact, including:

• St. Vrain Forest Health Partnership (Boulder County): A $1 million Landscape Resilience Investment protected 420 priority acres surrounding Ralph Price Reservoir, the primary drinking water source for Lyons and Longmont. The project also catalyzed the development of management plans covering more than 2,000 additional acres and leveraged nearly $2 million in additional implementation funding.
• Lake County Community Wildland-Urban Interface Project (Leadville): Through a Workforce Development Grant, the Arkansas River Watershed Collaborative partnered with Colorado's SWIFT crews to mitigate nearly 150 acres of dense lodgepole pine adjacent to neighborhoods and schools. The work enabled Leadville/Lake County Fire Rescue to safely complete the county's first-ever pile burning operation, strengthening community confidence in local wildfire mitigation efforts while providing valuable workforce training.

COSWAP's demonstrated success has led the Colorado General Assembly to approve a permanent $6 million annual appropriation. The program's next competitive funding opportunities are for Landscape Resilience Investment grants opening this fall, followed by the Workforce Development Grant opportunity in fall 2027.

The full Colorado Strategic Wildfire Action Program 2021-2026 Impact Report, interactive project maps, and information about upcoming grant opportunities are available on DNR's website.

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