Watershed Impacts From Cameron Peak Fire Expected To Last For Many Years

By Dillon Thomas, CBS Denver:

LARIMER COUNTY, Colo. (CBS4) – Colorado’s largest fire on record, the Cameron Peak Fire, charred more than 208,000 acres in 2020. However, scientists and hydrologists fear the impacts the blaze will have on the Cache la Poudre River and Big Thompson River watersheds will likely last for at least a decade. Less than one year after the historic blaze, some municipalities had to turn off their intake from the rivers due to high levels of ash and sediment contaminating the rivers.

Colorado State University Hydrologist Stephanie Kampf said her team was already studying the clarity and flow of the Poudre River long before the historic blaze. However, when the fire charred its way past their equipment, ruining some of it, their studies changes to also documenting how the scorched landscape is handling watershed.

“Hydrology is the study of how water moves from the atmosphere through the soil and into streams and rivers,” Kampf said. “Whenever a fire burns nearby, we definitely pay attention in our field.”

Read more at CBS Denver

CBS Local Digital Media personalizes the global reach of CBS-owned and operated television and radio stations with a local perspective.