Boulder County approves $1.18 million for Superior, Conifer Hill wildfire mitigation

Boulder County commissioners unanimously approved $1,181,612.88 for two wildfire-mitigation projects Aug. 25: a goat-grazing program in Superior and forest treatments at Conifer Hill.

The Town of Superior received $191,350 for a three-year strategic-fuels program. The Watershed Center received $990,262.88 for the Conifer Hill Community Defense Project, according to the meeting minutes.

The Superior project will use rotational goat grazing to treat about 268.47 acres over three years and spread native seed mixes intended to support FireWise grassland growth. The schedule assigns about 77.92 acres to 2027, 65.05 acres to 2028 and 125.5 acres to 2029. A vendor will provide and care for about 300 goats, transport them, install fencing, haul water and monitor grazing. The project also calls for coordination with the Urban Prairie Project, Wildfire Partners, neighborhood representatives and Mountain View Fire & Medical.

The project scope identifies 2027 as the first project year but does not provide an exact calendar start date. The project is scheduled to run through July 20, 2029, and the grant is reimbursement-based. County grant materials say recipients may not begin work or receive funds until their agreements are executed. The materials do not establish that work had begun by Aug. 25.

At Conifer Hill, the Watershed Center — identified in the packet as LWOG doing business as The Watershed Center — will lead work across about 350 operable acres within a 768-acre project area. Planned work includes mechanical and hand thinning, tree marking, reducing ladder fuels and canopy continuity, improving defensible space, firefighter access and evacuation routes, removing slash, protecting the watershed, and conducting Wildfire Partners home assessments for participating landowners.

The Conifer Hill project has a July 20, 2029, completion deadline but no specified field-work start date. The packet does not show that work had begun or that any of the described work was complete as of Aug. 25.

The awards are part of a four-project package that staff recommended at $1,805,612.88. The package also includes $207,000 for the Dry Gulch Forestry Project and $417,000 for the YMCA Camp Tumbleson Lake Forestry Project. Staff said the grants would be matched by $2,511,350, creating a combined project budget of $4,343,212.88 across about 908 acres. The county’s grant recommendation requested approval from the grant portion of Wildfire Mitigation Tax revenues and authorization for staff to execute the funding agreements.