Please note: continuing education units (CEUs) will be offered for Colorado water and wastewater operators.

According to Colorado’s 2025 Wildfire Preparedness Plan, wildfire has always been a part of Colorado’s natural ecosystems. Drought conditions, warmer temperatures, an increasing number of homes in Wildland-Urban Interface (WUI) areas, and declining forest health have elevated wildland fire from a manageable natural resource problem to a growing public safety concern that has caused catastrophic damage in the last two decades.

CO_Water_ESS_Agenda_1

What can be done to better mitigate the wildfire threat for water and wastewater utilities? To help answer that question, please join the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Colorado Department of Public Health & Environment for a free virtual workshop on Zoom to learn more about planning for, responding to, and recovering from wildfires. The partnership between the Water and Wastewater Systems and Emergency Services Sectors will be highlighted, and morning presentations will cover best practices and lessons learned from past wildfires in Colorado that have affected water and wastewater utilities. The afternoon will give all participants an opportunity to discuss their past wildfire response experiences (as applicable) and share how they are preparing for the wildfire threat.

If you are a water or wastewater utility, please feel free to invite your local fire department/fire protection district and emergency management agency to the workshop. It takes a coordinated effort to best prepare and respond to wildfire.

For more information contact:
Rose Yeley Yeley.Rose@epa.gov