CSU program gets $300k for wetlands protection

CSU’s Colorado Natural Heritage Program has received more than $300,000 to help protect, manage and restore state wetlands.

Three Environmental Protection Agency grants will fund the program's creation of a multi-agency Colorado Wetlands Program Plan, an inventory of significant wetlands in Lake County and pocket guides illustrating common wetland plants in several Colorado regions, among other things.

The Colorado Wetlands Program Plan will guide state-level wetlands protection and management efforts between 2018 and 2023. The EPA awarded the Colorado State University program money to create a new wetlands plan in 2016, and this is the second year of funding.

The EPA grant also covers the creation of a publicly available database of wetlands information to inform restoration and mitigation planning.

Wetlands make up only 2 percent of Colorado's land but are extremely ecologically and economically significant because of their key roles in flood prevention, recreation and clean water supply, according to the Colorado Wetland Information Center. 

For more information on the EPA wetlands program grants, visit: https://www.epa.gov/wetlands/wetland-program-development-grants.