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South Arkansas River Restoration Project
The South Arkansas River springs from the high mountains just below the summit of Monarch Pass west of Salida, CO. Joined by several small tributaries, the South Ark flows down through public and private lands through mountain meadows, past old mines, ranches, farms and housing subdivisions before streaming through the town of Salida and joining the mainstem Arkansas River. It's a journey from the wilderness into the urban environment. Over many years, the South Arkansas River has been impacted by straightening, incising and becoming disconnected from the floodplain.
Around 2010, citizens of Poncha Springs initiated a small-scale restoration project by removing junked cars from the river, formerly used to shore up river bends and try to prevent erosion, and using process-based restoration techniques to improve an irrigation ditch headgate. The Collegiate Peaks Chapter of Trout Unlimited and the Central Colorado Conservancy (formerly the Land Trust of the Upper Arkansas) soon joined the citizens in this restoration work.
Today the UAWP works to continue this work along the South Arkansas River. Our long-term goal is to lead a series of restoration projects along the South Ark and her tributaries, from the headwaters to the confluence.
South Arkansas River Restoration Project
Phase 1 - The 1.2 Mile Reach from County Road 107 to the Confluence with the Arkansas River East of Salida, Colorado
Our first project targets the lowest 1.2-mile reach of the South Arkansas River on the south side of Salida.150 years of intensive land use and stream modification has impaired this target reach, resulting in a river that is straightened, channelized, and separated from its floodplain. The single channel runs shallow and overly wide in many areas. High spring runoff flows actively erode the stream banks, which lack sufficient riparian vegetation.
The 1.2-mile reach includes a number of private landowners, private businesses, a homeowners association and the City of Salida. The city, and the majority of other landowners, have expressed a desire for river re-naturalization and protection on their properties.
This reach includes a 0.25-mile section of river owned by the City of Salida and open to the public. This section is part of a planned multi-use development on a 100-acre parcel of land slated to include affordable housing, sports fields and open space.
All landowners are being engaged during the design process to ensure that the planned treatments on their property are compatible with their desires and land use needs.
The UAWP wants to provide a holistic re-naturalization of the entire 1.2-mile reach, spanning private and public property lines, so that the resulting restoration is coherent, supported by the landowners, and yields an intact, functional river corridor throughout the entire reach. We envision this as a multi-benefit project that will enhance ecological health, diversity, and resilience; create opportunities for ecological education and recreation; provide opportunities for public and landowner engagement and participation in ecological restoration; and provide for wildfire protection and mitigation of post-fire effects.
The SARRP is a project under the UAWP, with project co-leads Collegiate Peaks Chapter Trout Unlimited (CPCTU) and Central Colorado Conservancy (CCC). The UAWP also includes the Arkansas River Watershed Collaborative (ARWC), the Upper Arkansas Conservation District (UACD), and the Greater Arkansas River Nature Association (GARNA). Other collaborators on the project include the National Park Service Rivers, Trails, and Conservation Assistance program (NPS-RTCA), Colorado Trout Unlimited (CTU), City of Salida, Colorado Parks & Wildlife (CPW), Chaffee County, and private landowners along the target reach. Collegiate Peaks Chapter Trout Unlimited (CPCTU) is acting as the fiscal agent for the SARRP.
Funders
This project funded with financial support from the Colorado Water Conservation Board (CWCB) and the Collegiate Peaks Chapter of Trout Unlimited.