LITTLETON, Colo. — About 2,700 dead and dying trees are being removed from Chatfield State Park to increase safety throughout the area.
Cottonwood and willow trees that have been inundated with water since 2023 are dying and at risk of falling.
“When we got all the moisture in 2023, the water level stayed high in Chatfield, which was good for the storage allocators that had water in the reservoir but not so good for the trees,” said Scott Roush, northeast deputy regional manager for Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW). “These trees are starting to get weak, they'll start falling over. [With] wind events, like we're having a little wind today, [trees] will have a tendency to start falling over. Then they become a hazard for people and for everything around it.”
Those trees are not only a hazard to people who may be boating or kayaking but also to the dam outlet at Chatfield Reservoir.
“It could cause a damming effect down there, and it could plug up the spillway,” said Roush. “Then you're causing water to back up, and then it releases it all at once. So that's a worst-case scenario type thing.”
The trees being removed only account for about 1% of all the trees at the reservoir. Even so, CPW has planted more than 100,000 trees and bushes throughout the park to make up for the trees that need to be cleared. This is to maintain the habitat for native wildlife and birds that call Chatfield State Park home.
Workers will continue to clear the trees for at least the next six months, working their way around the reservoir. While it might be frustrating for visitors who have enjoyed kayaking through the trees over the past couple of years, it all comes down to keeping people safe.
“Would they be disappointed if that's what you're looking forward to? Yeah, but we have to look at safety,” said Roush. “Safety comes first. We don't want people getting out here, getting hurt.”