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Technical Assistance

Colorado Natural Hazards Mitigation Plan

The Colorado Natural Hazards Mitigation Plan is the State’s FEMA-approved plan that serves as a foundation for the State’s program to reduce risks to people, property, and infrastructure from natural hazards. The Plan is administered and updated by the Colorado Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management.

Silver Jackets

Silver Jackets is a state-led interagency team that brings together multiple state, federal, and sometimes tribal and local agencies to learn from one another and apply their knowledge to reduce the risk of flooding and other natural disasters, and to enhance response and recovery efforts when such events do occur. The Colorado Water Conservation Board is the lead state agency and the US Army Corps of Engineers (Omaha District) is the lead federal partner. The Silver Jackets Team Charter for Colorado became official in March 2013.

The Nature Conservancy – Private Lands Conservation

The Nature Conservancy works with landowners, communities, cooperatives and businesses to establish local groups that can protect land. Some of the main tools applied include land trusts, conservation easements, private reserves, and incentives.    

Colorado State Forest Service

A comprehensive resource for communities, practitioners, and homeowners on topics related to wildfire mitigation and forest health. This website includes links to funding assistance, Community Wildfire Protection Plans, Colorado Wildfire Risk Assessment Portal (CO-WRAP), and state-specific guidance on wildfire mitigation best practices.

Fire-Adapted Communities Learning Network

A national learning network of practitioners dedicated to community wildfire risk reduction and resilience, including related issues such as post-fire flooding. The program is administered by the Nature Conservancy and the Watershed Research and Training Center. The Fire-Adapted Communities website includes a blog oriented towards wildfire mitigation and outreach topics and other practitioner resources for fire-adapted communities, including a Fire-Adapted Community Self-Assessment Tool.

National Disaster Preparedness Training Center

The National Disaster Preparedness Training Center (NDPTC) offers training and education programs at no cost to participating communities. The available courses cover a range of topics relevant to disaster mitigation planning in Colorado. NDPTC is a member of the National Domestic Preparedness Consortium, a FEMA/DHS training partner.

SHELDUS™

Developed by the Hazards & Vulnerability and Research Institute at the University of South Carolina,  SHELDUS™ provides a county-level hazard loss data and map set for the U.S. for 18 different natural hazard events types and has been used by some Colorado communities in completing the risk assessments for their local or regional hazard mitigation plans.

Community Planning Assistance for Wildfire Program

Led by Headwaters Economics and Wildfire Planning International, this new program provides communities with increased capacity to address technical planning efforts. As part of this program, community examples provide additional examples of land use planning and regulatory strategies being implemented across the country.