Author: Kim Lennberg
Post Date: 6/17/2019
Contributed by Kim Lennberg, Principal/Watershed Scientist, Alba Watershed Consulting
CRA’s summer social last week at Upslope Brewing in Boulder was a huge success. Turnout was great, the crowd was enthusiastic, the beers and empanadas hit the spot, and our guest speaker, Laura Kroeger with Urban Drainage and Flood Control District (UDFCD), was fantastic and engaging. In a lively 20 minutes, she counted down a “top ten” list of important lessons UDFCD has learned over the course of 50 years of practice. While some items may have been “preaching to the choir,” they were good conversation starters and acted as reminders that pushing the envelope takes time and effort, and we need to keep our collective foot on the gas pedal.
Laura’s list hit on the need for a diverse team of experts who are able to collaborate; the reminder that “not all green is equal;” the win-win of multi-use projects; the data-driven recognition that the more a system is confined, the higher the cost for management; and (my favorite) the need to collect data to inform the learning process and continue to advance the science of restoration (who doesn’t love a shout out for monitoring and adaptive management?!).
If you’re interested in getting to know your fellow CRA members and hearing from diverse and interesting speakers, please join us at our next social event, Colorado Stream Restoration Network (CSRN) workshop, or the annual Sustaining Colorado Watersheds conference in Avon in October.
Until then, see you on the river!