Healthy Watersheds.
Resilient Communities.Collaborative solutions for watershed health, wildfire resilience, and community preparedness across Colorado’s Arkansas River Basin.
Protecting the Arkansas Basin.
Together, from headwaters to plains.
The Arkansas River Watershed Collaborative is a nonprofit working across Colorado’s largest river basin to reduce wildfire risk, restore rivers and forests, and build community resilience. Through deep-rooted partnerships and on-the-ground action, we’re protecting the natural systems that communities, agriculture, and ecosystems all depend on.
Where we focus.
Three priorities driving our work across the basin.
Wildfire & Forest Resilience
Proactively reducing wildfire risk, strengthening forest health, and empowering communities to prepare — so the next fire causes less damage and recovery is faster.
Watershed Restoration
Restoring streams, removing barriers, reclaiming mine-impacted lands, and improving water quality — from the alpine headwaters to the agricultural heartland of the lower basin.
Community Engagement & Education
Empowering residents, landowners, and partners across the basin to understand watershed health and take part in the solutions that protect it.
Real work. Real results.
Measured progress across 28,000 square miles.
Square-mile service area
Acres of forest health work
Active partner organizations
Built on partnership.
Our story starts with listening to the land — and the communities who care for it.
Founded in 2017 as an outgrowth of the Arkansas Basin Roundtable, ARWC was created to turn shared concerns about wildfire, water quality, and watershed health into coordinated action. What started as a post-fire response effort has grown into a basin-wide organization focused on prevention, restoration, and community preparedness.
Today, our team of watershed practitioners, foresters, and community organizers works from Leadville to the Lower Arkansas Valley — bringing people and resources together to protect the places we all depend on.
From the watershed.
Stories, reports, and updates from across the basin.
Arkansas River Report – March 2026
A mid-March heat wave hit the Western US and here in Colorado, it has taken a serious toll on the state’s snowpack...
Arkansas River Report – February 2026
I’ve woken up the past few mornings with the strange sensation that I’ve somehow time-traveled to spring. Or...
Arkansas River Report – January 2026
If you are in Colorado right now, you don’t need SNOTEL data to understand our current climatic conditions. A glance...
Be part of the solution.
Every action strengthens the basin.
Whether you’re a landowner preparing for wildfire, a community member who wants to volunteer, or a supporter who shares our vision — there’s a place for you in this work.
Protect Your Home
Wildfire mitigation tips and resources for before and after fire.
Slash & Chipping
Find a collection site or sign up for our chipping program.
Volunteer
Join a work day, monitoring program, or community event.
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