Fort Collins Environment

Source-led reporting on the Poudre, water, climate, wildfire, agriculture, wildlife, and the public land around town.

The lead field file

Commissioning brief

Read the landscape before you go

A trail idea is only useful when access, weather, and closures are current.

The environmental desk begins at the official conditions board, then connects trail access to water, heat, fire, habitat, and stewardship. A beautiful place can still be the wrong place to visit on a particular day.

Our first field package will trace one local watershed from public data to a ground-level walk, with agency review for technical claims and a clear list of what remains uncertain.

Supporting dispatches

Three ways into the desk

These are the recurring story forms the desk is built to report—not claims that unfinished fieldwork has already happened.

Poudre watch

Public river, water-quality, access, and restoration updates in one readable ledger.

Natural-area conditions

Closures, parking pressure, wildlife protections, and an alternate plan.

Climate plan, translated

What a city target or program changes for a household, renter, or business.

The recurring feed

Conditions check twice weekly · monthly public-plan explainer · seasonal field guide

What must clear before publication

Conditions are rechecked on publication day. Scientific conclusions require a qualified source; field observations are labeled as observations, not measurements.

Continue through Fort Collins

Hikes we like Cycling desk This week

Corrections, sourcing questions, and first-hand reporting offers go to the accountable editor through the magazine standards page. Advertising is handled separately and cannot buy coverage, rank, or conclusion.