he Roaring Fork Watershed is an importanttributary to the Colorado River. It supports

large areas of intact riparian forests and wetlands,as well as sensitive aquatic species such as theboreal toads and Colorado River cutthroat trout.An area in need of habitat protection and restor-ation, the Roaring Fork Watershed has been identified by The Nature Conservancy and itspartners as a priority landscape for conservationefforts. This document describes the work thatthese conservation partners are doing to conservethis important area.

Our Conservation Vision

The Roaring Fork Watershed is a spectacularlandscape and outstanding biological jewel. In thefuture, it will continue to sustain healthy riversand streams along with the natural processes thatsupport them. The watershed’s rivers and streamswill continue to support populations of globallysignificant native plants and animals, includingColorado River cutthroat trout, boreal toad, blackswift, and willow hawthorn. Roaring Fork residents, decision-makers, land managers, andvisitors will take pride in and be inspired to worktogether to protect and, where needed, restore the rivers, streams, riparian communities, andassociated species, thereby maintaining the manyecological services that the watershed provides.

Roaring Fork WatershedMeasures of Conservation Success

T

Science guides our work in theRoaring Fork Watershed. This docu-ment highlights several key featuresof the riparian and aquatic biodiver-sity in the Roaring Fork Watershed,the challenges to their successfulconservation, and means of meas-uring the progress toward effectiveconservation. The project planningprocess used to generate this reportwas developed by The NatureConservancy based on 50-yearsexperience in conservation. To fulfillour long-term vision and achieve ourgoals, the Conservancy employs anintegrated conservation processcalled Conservation by Design. Thisliving process identifies the keyplaces where conservation needs tooccur (or will be most successful),develops strategies, involves takingaction, and measures success ofefforts and outcomes. This process isadaptable over time and uses themeasures of success to stimulatecontinued thinking and actions forconservation.

Conservation by Design

Through Conservation by Design, acommon vision is created to ensurethe long-term survival of nativespecies and natural communities.This process focuses attention onkey issues including the biodiversitystatus, degree of threats and progresstoward conservation success. Such

information, when available, empowers people from all walks oflife to discuss, interact, and consider alternative ways of acting on behalfof nature. Nothing could be morefundamental to fostering a highstandard of sustainable living andsuccessful conservation than havingobjective status information toinform individual and group decisions. The Nature Conservancyoffers this informative report in thehope that it will inspire you to take a strong interest in the ecologicalhealth of the roaring ForkWatershed. Good decisions aboutthe future will depend on it.

Conservation Planning

The Conservancy uses conservationplans to develop site-specific conservation strategies and preparefor taking action and measuring success. These plans follow what we call the 5-S Framework:

u SYSTEMS. The conservation planning team, which includedexperts from local, state, andfederal agencies and private conservation organizations, identifies the species and naturalcommunities that will be thefocus of conservation for thearea. To do so, biodiversity listsdeveloped during the ecoregionalassessment are modified toinclude site-specific priorities.

Roaring Fork Watershed Project Area

2

Ecoregions

n Southern Rocky Mountains

nUtah High Plateau

n Colorado Plateau

Roaring Fork River

Photo © TBD CO060712_D053.jpg

Map To Come

u STRESSES. The team determineshow ecological systems are compro-mised; by habitat reduction or fragmentation, or by changes in thenumber or type of species, or byalteration of ecological processessuch as fire and hydrology.

u SOURCES. The team will then iden-tify and rank the causes, or sources,of stress for each ecological systemor key species. The analysis ofstresses and sources together makeup the threat assessment.

u STRATEGIES. An important step inthe process is finding practicalcooperative ways to mitigate oreliminate the identified threats andenhance biodiversity.

u SUCCESS. Each plan outlines meth-ods for assessing our effectivenessin reducing threats and improvingbiodiversity—usually by monitoringprogress toward established biolog-ical and programmatic goals.

u SITUATION. An understanding ofthe cultural, political and economicsituation behind the threats isessential for developing soundstrategies. This human context isoften referred to as the sixth “S”.

Site Description

The Roaring Fork Watershed is a large,relatively intact landscape, located inwestern Colorado. The Roaring ForkRiver is one of the largest tributaries of the Colorado River. Much of theheadwaters is managed by the USForest Service and supports severalpopulations of rare aquatic speciesincluding boreal toads and ColoradoRiver cutthroat trout. Extensive relatively intact riparian forests, shrub-lands and wetlands can be found alongthe rivers and streams within theRoaring Fork Watershed. The ColoradoNatural Heritage Program and localbiologists have identified numerousoccurrences of rare plants, animals, and combinations of plants that occurin rare plant communities within thiswatershed. Historically, much of thearea was in large private ranches.Recently, many private land areas arebeing rapidly developed, while othersare being protected by local and national organizations.

Key Conservation Targets

RARE ANIMALS

u Colorado River cutthroat troutu Boreal toadu Black swiftu Bald eagle winter roostsu Brown-capped rosy finch

(in alpine)u Canada lynx habitat

RARE PLANTS

u Willow hawthornu Canyon bog orchidu Hanging garden sullivantiau Altai cottongrass

RARE PLANT COMMUNITIES

(Unique combinations of forbs,grasses, shrubs, and trees)u Montane riparian forestsu Willow carrsu Kettle ponds

ECOLOGICAL SYSTEMS

u Riparian systemu Aquatic system

3

ConservationAction

Planning

Developing Strategies and

Measures

Defining the Project

ImplementingStrategies and

Measures

Using Results to Adapt

and Improve

1. Inbasin water diversions for agriculture and development

2. Nonnative fish and whirling disease impact cutthroat trout

3. Invasive plant species

4. Twin Lakes and Fry-Ark trans-mountain water diversions

5. Existing roads

6. Chytrid fungus–disease of boreal toads

7. New sub-development

The high ranking sources of stress, or “critical threats,” are

Conservation Planning Participants:

u The Nature Conservancy

u Roaring Fork Conservancy

u US Forest Service

u Colorado Natural Heritage Program

Critical Threats

The conservation targets found in theRoaring Fork watershed are threatenedby multiple stresses, which can acttogether to effect the viability orintegrity of each ecological system.Based on surveys, interviews with landmanagers, ecoregional assessmentinformation and personal observations,we ranked the main sources of stressfor each conservation target (see chartof “Threats to Conservation Systems”on page 9).

The high ranking sources of stress, or “critical threats,” are

1. Inbasin water diversions for agriculture and development

2. Nonnative fish and whirling disease impact cutthroat trout

3. Invasive plant species

4. Twin Lakes and Fry-Ark trans-mountain water diversions

5. Existing roads

6. Chytrid fungus–disease of boreal toads

7. New sub-development

These threats have direct and indirectimpacts on the integrity of riparianand aquatic ecological systems withinthe Roaring Fork Watershed. If notabated, the critical threats will result in fragmenting of habitat and loss ofnative species.

Water diversions, both in-basin andtrans-mountain, pose a serious threatto downstream biodiversity by alteringthe hydrologic regime. The native fishcommunity and Colorado River cut-throat trout are adversely affected bywhirling disease and the managementof nonnative fish.

Some invasive plant species affectriparian areas in the Roaring ForkWatershed including Canada thistle,absinth wormwood, Dalmatian toad-flax, oxeye daisy, and tamarisk. Theseinvasive species may have detrimentaleffects on native communities byincreasing competition and changingcommunity structure.

In addition, some threats are localizedin scope or only affect one species orgroup of species. Boreal toads are seriously impacted by a single disease,chytrid fungus. The operation of thedam along the Frying Pan River alsoimpacts the hydrologic regime down-stream on the Frying Pan and RoaringFork Rivers.

Conservation Objectives

The conservation goals for the RoaringFork Watershed are to enhance theviability or integrity of the riparian andaquatic species and systems and abatethe threats.

Objective 1: Through 2016, maintainor increase population size, extent, andpurity of all existing cutthroat troutpopulations.

4

Long Term Ecological Goals

u Effectively conserve all existing conservation populations ofColorado River cutthroat trout andestablish or improve additional populations such that a total of 15self-sustaining populations exist.

u Conserve healthy aquatic communi-ties as indicated by the presence ofself-sustaining non-game native fishpopulations, such as flannelmouthand bluehead sucker.

u Conserve and, where possible,improve/restore at least five viableboreal toad populations.

u Ensure the persistence of all exam-ples of rare and imperiled riparianplant and animal species, such aswillow hawthorn and black swift(see Key Conservation Target list).

u Conserve and where warranted,improve all occurrences of rare andimperiled riparian plant communi-ties, including rare willow carrs.

u Protect and, where needed, restorefunctional riparian connectivity bymaintaining or restoring key areasof willows, cottonwoods, and othernative riparian shrubs.

Naturalist Workshop

Photo © TBD CO060831_D013.jpg

Objective 2: By 2016, at least maintainexisting boreal toad populations and,where possible, restore or expand popu-lations.

Objective 3: Through 2016, maintainand/or improve native fish communities.

Objective 4: By 2016, eliminate oreradicate woody invasives from RoaringFork riparian areas; keep all List A weedspecies and NZ mudsnail from estab-lishing in the watershed; prevent theexpansion of the extent and eliminatefrom some sub-watersheds key list Bweed species; and prevent the expan-sion of list C species.

Objective 5: By 2016, identify and pro-tect most of the high quality rare ripari-an communities and areas withhawthorn, and 50% of “common” highquality riparian communities on privatelands in the watershed, and restore highpriority areas of riparian zone such thatthe riparian zone and aquatic system arefunctionally connected.

Objective 6: By 2016, identify and provide adequate water flows to supporttargeted species and natural communi-ties that depend on aquatic and riparianhabitats in key places.

Objective 7: Through 2016, identifyand minimize impacts from land man-agement activities, such as road and trailimpacts, in riparian and uplands in highpriority areas.

Objective 8: By 2016, ensure that waterquality throughout the watershed meetsstate standards for aquatic life.

Conservation Strategies

To achieve the aforementioned objectives, The Nature Conservancyand its partners will undertake the following strategic actions.

Strategic Action 1

PROTECT KEY AREAS OFPRIVATE LANDS

u Place conservation easements orother permanent protection witheffective conservation managementon high quality rare riparian commu-nities and species, focusing on LowerFrying Pan and Lower Crystal Rivers.

u Opportunistically protect “common”high quality riparian communities.

Strategic Action 2

RESTORATION OF KEYAQUATIC SPECIES

u Create and implement cutthroat troutrestoration and improvement plan forRoaring Fork Watershed that is integrated with the watershed planColorado River cutthroat trout multi-state and federal agency conservationagreement 2001.

u Create and implement boreal toadrecovery plan for Roaring ForkWatershed, consistent with borealtoad multi-state and federal agencyconservation agreement 2001.

u Through further research and inven-tory, identify high priority reaches for“protection” and restoration of nativefish communities.

Strategic Action 3

MAINTAIN AND RESTORE AQUATICAND RIPARIAN HABITAT

u Develop and implement the RoaringFork Watershed Plan.

u Ensure that all key ditches have ditchBMP’s in place and drought manage-ment plans.

u Ensure ecological flows in the UpperFrying Pan and Upper Roaring ForkRivers through partnerships and pos-sibly instream flow designations.

Strategic Action 4

LAND MANAGEMENT ANDRESTORATION: PUBLIC ANDPRIVATE PARTNERSHIPS

u Support and build upon county andmunicipal weed control efforts, focus-ing attention on a coordinated weedeffort that targets riparian areas as ahigh priority for the control or elimi-nation of invasive species.

u Minimize the impacts of existingroads, by decreasing density, andemploy best management practicesfor the use of road chemicals andmaintenance.

u Establish adequate riparian setbackswhich will buffer impacts to riparianand aquatic systems, especially in thelower portion of the watershed.

The mission of The Nature Conservancy is to preserve

the plants, animals and natural communities that represent

the diversity of life on Earth by protecting the lands and

waters they need to survive.

Mule Deer

5

Photo © Bob Gress

6

Colorado River cutthroat trout

Measuring our Success

Two fundamental questions facing any conservation project team are: “How is the biodiversity doing?” and “Are theconservation actions we are taking having the intended impact?” To answer these questions, we evaluate a number ofindicators that gauge the status of biodiversity and critical threats. Tracking progress toward our goals and evaluating theeffectiveness of our actions provides feedback we need to adjust our priorities and strategies. Measuring results closesthe loop of our conservation approach.

Overview of Priority Measures — Framework for the Roaring Fork Watershed Conservation Area

INDICATORS

THREAT MONITORING

1. Water Quality u Amount of degrading land uses u Amount of impervious surface u Amount of sediment in riveru Number of reaches not meeting state standards

2. Invasive Species u Presence of invasive plants that significantly impact riparian areasu Presence of native and nonnative fishu Presence of whirling disease in potential cutthroat trout areas

3. Residential Development in Riparian u Proportion of riparian areas secured against development4. Water Flow Regime u Fragmentation of system by dams and diversions

u Number of stream reaches not meeting minimum instream flowu Timing and magnitude of flow regime compared to “natural”

PROGRESS MONITORING

5. Policies that protect riparian areas u County policies that eliminate development in riparian areas6. Watershed plan u Presence of a watershed plan and implementation structure

VIABILITY MONITORING

7. Rare riparian plants, animals u Presence and condition of rare plant, animal and plant and plant communities community occurrences

u Proportion of reaches with willow hawthorn8. Colorado River cutthroat trout u Occupied stream miles

u Purity of cutthroat trout populations9. Boreal Toad u Recruitment and multiple age classes of toads within each population10. Riparian condition and connectivity u Proportion of appropriate habitat with beaver

u Percent of stream miles with greater than one mile of contiguous riparian habitat on both stream banks

Photo © TBD BLM Utah Website

7

Biodiversity Viability or Integrity Ranking System

The viability or integrity of the selected conservation elements wereassigned a rank using a four-level scale.The viability or integrity ranking system uses simple categorical ranks, as follows:

VERY GOOD. The factor is functioningat its ecologically desirable status andrequires little human intervention.

GOOD. The factor is functioning within its range of acceptable variation.However, it may require some humanintervention to maintain this status.

FAIR. The factor lies outside of itsrange of acceptable variation andrequires human intervention. Ifunchecked, the target will be vulnera-ble to serious degradation.

POOR. Allowing the factor to remainin this condition for an extended peri-od will make restoration or preventingextirpation practically impossible.

Integrity/Viability Criteria

The assessment of viability or integrity is based on three criteria:

SIZE. This is a measure of the area or abundance of the conservation targetor element’s occurrence. For ecologicalsystems and communities, size is simply a measure of the occurrencegeographic coverage. For species, sizetakes into account the area of occu-pancy and number of individuals.

Minimum area needed to ensure sur-vival or re-establishment after naturaldisturbance is another aspect of size.

CONDITION. This is an integratedmeasure of the composition, structure,and biotic interactions that character-ize the occurrence. This includes factors such as reproduction, age structure, biological composition (e.g., presence of native versus non-native species, presence of characteris-tic patch types for ecological systems),structure (e.g., canopy, understory, andgroundcover in a forested community),and biotic interactions (e.g., levels ofcompetition, predation, and disease).

LANDSCAPE CONTEXT. This is an integrated measure of two factors: connectivity and the dominant envi-ronmental regimes and processes thatestablish and maintain the occur-rence. Dominant environmentalregimes and processes include her-bivory, hydrologic and water chem-istry regimes (surface and groundwa-ter), geomorphic processes, climacticregimes (temperature and precipita-tion), fire regimes and other kinds ofnatural disturbance. Connectivityincludes such factors as species havingaccess to habitats and resources need-ed for life cycle completion, fragmen-tation of ecological systems, and theability to respond to environmentalchange through dispersal, migration,or re-colonization.

Threat Ranking Guidelines

Threats are composed of stresses andsources of stress (or “sources”). Astress is defined as a process or eventwith direct negative consequences onthe biodiversity (e.g., alteration ofwater flow into a marsh). The source ofstress is the action or entity that pro-duces a stress (e.g., channel building).The planning team must identify andrank the stresses and sources for eachof the species and ecological systems.Guidelines for selection and ranking of stresses and sources are below.

The stress ranks and source ranks: 1)help elucidate the factors influencingthat species and ecological systems andsubsequently, the necessary conserva-tion strategies, and 2) contribute to theanalysis of threats for the conservationarea. The stress and source rankingsare analyzed together via computer toprovide threat ranks for the element.

Stresses are ranked based on the sever-ity and scope of damage expectedwithin 10 years under the current circumstances. Sources of stress areranked based on the expected contri-bution of the sources and the irreversibility of the impact.

All these aspects are combined into an overall threat rank for a particularsource (i.e., operation of dams) to allecological systems.

Viability or Integrity Summary

LANDSCAPE VIABILITY/INTEGRITYCONTEXT CONDITION SIZE RANK

Upper Frying Pan River & Rocky Fork Creek

Upper/Middle Crystal River & Thompson Creek

Middle Roaring Fork River Tribs (Snowmass Creek)

Upper Roaring Fork River above Aspen & tribs

Roaring Fork River

Cattle Creek/4 mile/3 mile

Lower Frying Pan River

Lower Crystal River

Site Biodiversity Rank

GOOD

GOOD

GOOD VERY GOOD

FAIR

GOOD

FAIR

FAIR

FAIR

FAIR FAIR

FAIR

GOOD

GOOD

GOOD

GOOD

GOOD

GOOD

GOOD

GOOD

GOOD

GOOD

FAIR

FAIR

FAIR

FAIR

FAIR

Integrity Background

Assessing the current conditionof the biodiversity is critical inthe development of conservationstrategies. Where viability andintegrity are high, the strategy isto prevent degradation. On theother hand, if the integrity ispoor, then restoration, reintro-duction, or reclamation might beimportant actions to elevate thecondition.

Integrity ratings are made usingthe best science available andoften with vigorous discussion.The planning team develops categories that define the relativecondition in terms of size, ecolog-ical condition, and the landscapecontext. The team determineswhich category best reflects thecurrent state at the project area.Clearly, in deciding how to allo-cate scarce conservation dollars,we should, where it is possible,focus conservation actions on thepopulations with the highestintegrity or otherwise stated asthe most likely to persist.

Collecting conservation data Peregrine falcon

Functioning at its ecologically desirable status. Requires little human intervention.

Functioning within its range of acceptable variation. May require human intervention to maintain this status.

Outside its range of acceptable variation. Requires human intervention. Vulnerable to serious degradation if left unchecked

If condition remains for extended period, restoration or prevention of extirpation will be practically impossible.

POOR

FAIR

GOOD

VERY GOOD

POOR

8

GOOD

GOOD

GOOD

GOOD

Photo © Janet Haas Photo © J. Dale Swenarton

GOOD

Threats to Conservation Targets

Inbasin diversions/development

Nonnative fish

Whirling Disease

Inbasin diversions/agriculture

Invasive plants

New Subdevelopment

Existing Roads

Twin Lakes and Fry-Ark Transmountain Diversion

Chytrid Fungus

Grazing Practices

Operation of dam

Ski area expansion

Potential logging

Oil and Gas Development

Recreational vehicles

Mining

Overall Threat Status

Threat is likely to slightly impair the ecological system over a portion of the area.

Threat is likely to moderately degrade the ecological system over some portion of the area.

Threat is likely to seriously degrade the ecological system over much of the area.

Threat is likely to destroy the ecological system over much of the area.VERY HIGH

HIGH

MEDIUM

LOW

HIGHHIGH

HIGH

HIGH

HIGH

HIGH

HIGH HIGH

HIGH

HIGH

HIGH HIGH

HIGH

HIGH HIGH

HIGH HIGH

HIGH

HIGH

HIGH

HIGH

HIGH HIGH

HIGH

HIGH

HIGH

HIGH

HIGH

HIGH

HIGH

HIGH

HIGH

HIGH

HIGH

HIGH

HIGH

HIGH

HIGH

HIGH

HIGH

HIGH

HIGH

HIGH

MEDIUM MEDIUMMEDIUM

MEDIUM

MEDIUM

MEDIUM

MEDIUMMEDIUM MEDIUM

MEDIUM MEDIUM

MEDIUM

MEDIUM

MEDIUM

LOW

LOW

MEDIUM

MEDIUM

MEDIUM

MEDIUM

MEDIUM

MEDIUM

MEDIUM

MEDIUM

MEDIUM

MEDIUM MEDIUM MEDIUM

MEDIUM

MEDIUM

MEDIUM

MEDIUM

LOW

LOW LOW

LOW

LOW LOW LOW

LOW

LOW

Boreal toad

9

MEDIUM

MEDIUM

LOW

UPPER FRYINGPAN RIVER& ROCKY

FORK CREEK

UPPER/MIDDLECRYSTAL

RIVER ANDTHOMPSON

CREEK

MIDDLEROARING FORK

RIVER TRIBS(SNOWMASS

CREEK)

UPPERROARING FORK

RIVERABOVE ASPEN

& TRIBS

ROARINGFORKRIVER

CATTLECREEK4 MILE/3 MILE

LOWERFRYING PAN

RIVER

LOWERCRYSTAL

RIVER

OVERALLTHREAT

RANK

Photo © Geoff Hammerson(need permission)

HIGH HIGH VERY HIGH HIGH HIGH VERY HIGHVERY HIGH HIGH HIGH VERY HIGH

Situation Analysis Process

A good situation analysis diagram provides a team with a clear and common understanding of the context inwhich the project occurs. The model will show assumptions and potential obstacles as well as data gaps. The situation diagram process has proven useful and has lead to innovative and different strategies. The diagram seeksto demonstrate the complexity and interrelatedness of factors affecting biodiversity within the project area.Ecological systems, along with high priority dependent species—nested targets—are linked to ecological processes, and factors that directly impact the biodiversity and processes, resulting challenges, and key strategies.

How the System Works: Roaring Fork Watershed

The situation diagram illustrates the interactions among the species and systems within a sub-watershed, threats, and the underlying causes and factors that influence the biodiversity of the Roaring Fork Watershed. The sub-watersheds of the Roaring Fork contain riparian and aquatic ecological systems. The hydrologic regimesthat maintain these areas are also important aspects of this landscape. This biodiversity is impacted by many factors including water diversion for agriculture and home development, invasive plant and animal species, andoperation of dams.

The following are examples of how to read this diagram. Aquatic and riparian biodiversity in the Lower CrystalRiver are impacted by in-basin diversions for municipal and agricultural uses. A key strategy, restoration of keyaspects of the hydrologic regime, will address the impacts of the in-basin diversions. The Lower Crystal Riverriparian areas are also degraded by invasive species and incompatible livestock grazing. Two key strategies,restoration of priority riparian areas and protecting priority areas, will address these issues.

Snowmass Creek

10

Photo © John Fielder

Olive-sided flycatcher

11

Conclusion

The Nature Conservancy is proud to be working with public and private partners to achieve a common vision: to preserve the biodiversity of the Roaring Fork Watershed by protecting key parcels, creating incentives for compatibleland management, and restoring ecological systems. This vision is achievable by leveraging our strengths to achieve tangible and lasting results. We believe that good science will be the cornerstone of our future success.

Photo © Jim Bailey (need permission)

9/2007 u MRCRMXXX u PRINTED ON RECYCLED PAPER

Cover photograph © TBD CO060909_F029.jpg

The Nature Conservancy 2424 Spruce StreetBoulder, Colorado 80302303 /444–2950

nature.org/colorado