2021-Forest Health Prologis SWAT

Start Date-End Date: 06/10/2021-06/10/2021 Land Manager Office: City and County of Denver - Parks and Recreation Land Manager Contact: Andy Perri Funding Partner: Programmatic Partner: Summary: Help forests thrive in Genesee Park! Description: Read Before You Register! Need-to-Know Details: We greatly appreciate you volunteering your time and energy to care for Colorado's outdoor places during COVID-19. To help provide a fun and safe experience for all, there are a few temporary changes to be prepared for: You may only register yourself. Every volunteer must sign our digital COVID-specific forms ahead of time to be able to attend. You must provide your own food.VOC will not be providing meals at this time. You must bring a face mask and work gloves.Pleaseclick herefor our full packing list of required and recommended items. Cancellation & Waitlists:Due to this year's limited number of projects and volunteer spots, we expect projects to fill quickly with waitlists. If you need to cancel, please email outreach@voc.org as soon as possible so we can free your spot for another volunteer and have a full workforce. If you are waitlisted for multiple projects, please call us at 303-715-1010 ext. 116 and we can help you find an open project, if available. Where You'll Be: Not far from Denver off I-70, Genesee Park feels a world away with over 2,000 acres to explore. It is one of the oldest parks in the Denver Mountain Parks system and is home to the historic Beaver Brook Trail, coveted hiker-only trails, and a herd of bison! Its proximity to Denver and diverse recreation opportunities - from picnicking to backcountry hiking - make this park a popular pick with everyone from families and groups. What You'll Do: Help forests thrive in Genesee Park! Join your colleagues to take part in simple, but important, tasks designed to improve the health of native Ponderosa pines and reduce the severity of wildfires. The work will involve using handsaws to cut smaller trees at ground level, which will then be collected and chipped. Volunteers will also chip material that has already been cut be previous groups. Why It Matters: When trees grow in clusters, they compete for moisture, nutrients, and sunlight. This weakens the trees and makes them more susceptible to bark beetles and diseases, which in turn leads to dead trees - perfect fuel for wildfires. By reducing the density of Genesee Park's Ponderosa pines, you will reduce the impact of wildfires and help the trees grow stronger and the forest more resilient. About Volunteers for Outdoor Colorado (VOC)Volunteers for Outdoor Colorado (VOC) is the state's oldest, largest, and leading outdoor stewardship nonprofit organization. Founded in 1984 to motivate and enable people to become active stewards of Colorado's natural resources, VOC has engaged nearly 125,000 people in more than 1,000 volunteer projects for a donated labor value of $25 million. Through award-winning youth and volunteer programs, leadership training, capacity-building programs, and collaborative efforts with nonprofits and land management agencies, VOC is an invaluable resource in Colorado, especially as our outdoor stewardship needs are approaching near-crisis levels. For more information, visit www.voc.org or call 303-715-1010. Latitude/Longitude: 39.714786, -105.309991 Additional Information: To help provide a fun and safe experience for all, there are a few temporary changes to be prepared for: You must provide your own food and, if desired, overnight accommodations.VOC will not be providing meals or campsites at this time. You must bring a face mask and work gloves.Pleaseclick herefor our full packing list of required and recommended items. Camping Available: No Physical Difficulty: Easy, Moderate High Altitude Project: Yes Desired Number of Volunteers: 25 Total Adult Volunteers Attended: 15 Total Youth Volunteers Attended: 0 Total Volunteer Days: 15 Total Unique Volunteers: 15 Total Volunteer Hours: 75 Staff Hours: 7 Stipend Hours: 0 Project Summary: Volunteers from Prologis helped the Denver Mountain Parks staff at Genesee Park in a thinning project. This included sawing/lopping small trees to allow more space for healthy trees to continue to grow and thrive as well as mitigate fires by reducing the amount of fuel available for fire. A few volunteers also helped chip up the cut trees with the park staff. Successes and Challenges: Successes The group was able to get more work done than predicted. Lessons Learned: Special Notes: Stewardship Education: Key Concerns or Comments from Staff or Volunteers: Description of Accidents/Incidents: Description of Work Completed: