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<br />II. FLOOD HAZARD MITIGATION <br /> <br />A. REHABILITATION OF PRIVATE LANDS <br />The Colorado State Forest Service (CSFS) has been involved with rehabilitation of private lands in <br />the Buffalo Creek vicinity. In particular, they have been working with land owners in the Sand <br />Draw and Spring Gulch watersheds. As of October 1996, three Forest Stewardship plans have been <br />completed that address rehabilitation on 197 acres in those areas. <br /> <br />As part of the effort, 250 linear feet of straw bale dams have been placed, 400 pounds of grass seed <br />have been spread, 400 trees have been planted, and 600 trees have been purchased for Spring <br />planting. The labor expended to date includes 300 hours of volunteer service, 30 hours of CSFS <br />technical assistance, and 4 hours of CSFS environmental education. <br /> <br />Another project which is now pending includes the purchase of 500 or more tree seedlings by the <br />Rocky Mountain News. Those trees are planned to be planted during the spring of 1997 by CSFS <br />personnel or by volunteers. <br /> <br />B. STRUCTURAL MITIGATION <br />Mitigation practices can involve temporary or permanent structural measures such as sandbags, <br />floodwalls, levees, channel improvements, elevation of buildings, and flood proofing/retrofitting. <br />The descriptions below are very brief and are intended to illustrate some of the alternatives <br />available. There are numerous mitigation documents available, and the CWCB can provide further <br />information and assistance to interested parties. The Colorado Office of Emergency Management <br />and the Federal Emergency Management Agency have information and expertise in these areas as <br />well. <br /> <br />Temporary Measures <br />Sandbags have long been used as a temporary flood control measure. The basic supplies required <br />for an emergency sandbag levee are: <br /> <br />· Sandbags (standard issue cloth or plastic bags are recommended) <br />. Source of Sand <br />. Polyethylene (Poly) <br />. Heavy Equipment <br />. Shovels, Wheelbarrows, and other hand tools <br />. People <br /> <br />Some general tips on how a sandbag levee should be created: <br /> <br />. The sandbag levee requires careful and well-planned placement. <br />. A properly filled sandbag is only half-full, and weighs about 40 pounds. <br />. The open end of a filled sandbag should be folded over, not stitched or tied. <br />. A key trench should be excavated to a depth of 4 to 6 inches and a width of 18 to 24 inches <br />prior to placing any sandbags. <br /> <br />2 <br />