Agency Profile
The Colorado State Forest Service provides technical forestry assistance, wildfire mitigation expertise and outreach and education to help landowners and communities achieve their forest management goals.

Our Mission
To achieve stewardship of Colorado’s diverse forest environments for the benefit of present and future generations
Who We Are
Established in 1955, the Colorado State Forest Service (CSFS) is a service and outreach agency of the Warner College of Natural Resources at Colorado State University. Headquartered in Fort Collins, the agency provides staffing for the Division of Forestry within the Colorado Department of Natural Resources.
The CSFS has approximately 170 (full-time and part-time) employees; more than 70 seasonal and student employees; and 18 field offices and several satellite offices throughout Colorado.
The CSFS is committed to providing timely, relevant forestry information and education to the residents of Colorado to achieve resilient forests and communities. Using applied science, the CSFS has adapted its focus and approach throughout the decades in response to emerging forestry issues.
What We Do
The Colorado State Forest Service improves the health and resiliency of Colorado’s forests, and annually assists thousands of landowners and hundreds of communities in managing trees and forests. As the lead state agency for providing forest stewardship and management, fuels reduction and wildfire mitigation assistance, the CSFS offers a variety of programs and services:
- Forest and timber management for forest health and restoration
- Fuels mitigation resources and fuels reduction projects to reduce wildfire risk
- Insect and disease surveys and detection
- Urban and community forestry assistance for homeowners and municipalities
- Guidance in obtaining grants and grant administration
- Trees and shrubs for conservation, tree planting plans and seedling tree advice
- Workshops for forest landowners, communities and homeowner associations
- Outreach and education for adults and youth
Forest Management
Many forest types in Colorado regenerate through large-scale disturbance – primarily insects, disease and wildfire. However, the proximity of people, homes and communities to many of these forests means a catastrophic wildfire or insect outbreak could put the public at greater risk, making forest management even more critical.
Forest management can improve the resiliency of our forests and help protect our water supplies. The CSFS collaborates with communities, landowners and partners to improve forest health, reduce insect impacts, and promote healthy and diverse forests for present and future generations.
The CSFS works closely with local, state, federal and tribal land managers and private landowners to plan and implement forestry projects across ownership boundaries to achieve landscape-scale benefits. This principle of shared stewardship of Colorado’s forests is central to the way the CSFS approaches forest management.
Wildfire Mitigation Resources
As the lead in Colorado for the Fire Adapted Communities® and Firewise USA® programs, the CSFS provides a variety of resources to proactively address wildfire risk in the wildland-urban interface. These resources include:
- Guidance in protecting homes, other structures and property from wildfire, including guidance for grassland wildfire
- Support in developing Community Wildfire Protection Plans
- Assistance in becoming a Firewise USA® site
- Publications offering science-based guidelines on home hardening, defensible space and and fuels reduction to help residents prioritize fire mitigation actions and reduce the risk of losing their homes during a wildfire
To help landowners and communities assess wildfire risk, the CSFS developed the Colorado Forest Atlas, which contains web-mapping tools that provide access to statewide wildfire risk assessment information. Through the Colorado Forest Atlas, wildfire mitigation and prevention planners and interested residents can generate maps and download data and reports highlighting areas that may benefit from focused mitigation efforts.
In addition, the CSFS is the lead agency for the State of Colorado’s Live Wildfire Ready public awareness campaign
Urban & Community Forestry
The CSFS is available to help communities with their tree planting and care needs. Specific community forestry programs include coordinating Tree City USA®, Tree Campus HIgher Education® and Arbor Day events.
The CSFS also addresses invasive species planning and response, and tree inventories and management plans.
Learn more on our Urban & Community Forestry page.
Trees for Conservation
Low-cost conservation seedling trees, shrubs and plants available to landowners from the CSFS Nursery are vital to the state’s conservation goals, including:
- reforesting burned areas,
- enhancing wildlife habitat,
- reducing soil erosion and
- planting living snow fences that provide protection from wind and snow.
Our nursery grows approximately 850,000 seedlings each year, distributing trees directly and through our network of cooperators.
Learn more on our Seedling Tree Nursery page.
Utilization of Colorado Wood
Merchantable wood generated from forest management activities helps drive down treatment costs and makes us less reliant on imported wood. Yet more than 90 percent of wood products purchased in Colorado are imported from out of state.
The CSFS-administered Colorado Wood Utilization and Marketing Program (CoWood) benefits from the expertise of forest products professionals, Colorado State University research scientists and a diverse collection of natural resource stakeholders throughout the West to promote the use of local forest products and provide business support.
Many Coloradans are familiar with CoWood’s Colorado Forest Products™ program, which educates consumers about the importance of buying local wood products.
Education & Outreach
Education and outreach efforts, including experiential learning opportunities for students and Project Learning Tree workshops for teachers, are intrinsic to the services we offer. Informing policymakers and the public through publications, media relations and online resources exemplifies our dedication to an education-based approach.
Learn more on our Resources for Educators & Youth page.
How You Can Make a Difference
Promote awareness
- through conversations with neighbors and communities, social media and sharing your forest management and wildfire mitigation efforts with us.
Make your voice heard
- by letting friends, colleagues, policymakers and others know that Colorado’s forest health is important to you.
Help other natural resource organizations
- achieve their objectives by introducing them to funding opportunities available through the CSFS Natural Resources Grants Database.
Donate
- online to help with forest management efforts, such as reforestation of burned land, tree planting or bark beetle mitigation.
Services for Homeowners & Landowners
The CSFS provides private landowners with technical assistance and wildfire mitigation expertise through workshops, publications, consultations and site visits.
Services Include
- Forest Ag Program planning and inspections
- Forest Legacy Program assistance
- Tree Farm planning and inspections
- Forest Stewardship Program planning
- Tree selection, planting and care advice
- No-cost tree seedlings if impacted by natural disasters
- Sick tree guidance
- Homesite assessments for wildfire risk, tree pests and forest health
- Fuels reduction and wood utilization assistance
Service fees are associated with some of these services; others are free of charge.
The Evolution of CSFS
In 1955, the Colorado General Assembly established the Colorado State Forest Service (CSFS) as a division of the Colorado State College of Agriculture and Mechanic Arts, now known as Colorado State University.
A Glance Looking Back
In 1965, a decade after the CSFS was established, legislators expanded the agency’s responsibilities and designated the CSFS as the state entity to “provide for the protection of forest resources of the state from fire, insects and disease” and to educate private forest landowners in management techniques.
At the time of this expansion, the CSFS operated on a budget of $392,000 and had only 29 employees divided among six field districts and a state office. Primary program areas were forest management; rural fire assistance; insect and disease management; marketing and utilization; and timber resource inventory. The agency also operated a seedling tree nursery and a shop for repairing and refurbishing fire equipment.
Insect and disease concerns dominated the attention of the CSFS during the 1970s and led to significant increases in both personnel and funding. High-profile incidents included the spread of Dutch elm disease in many of the state’s urban areas, particularly the hard-hit city of Denver, and the tremendous expansion of mountain pine beetle populations along the Front Range and I-70 corridor. By 1975, the agency’s budget had reached $1.6 million and was almost evenly split between state and federal dollars.
The passage of the federal Cooperative Forestry Assistance Act of 1978 brought new program opportunities to all state forestry agencies by authorizing the suite of programs that continues to be the basis for cooperative forestry delivery today. In Colorado, the Act helped the CSFS roll its continuing Dutch elm disease activities into a new Community Forestry Program and launched the agency into the development of an Agency Master Plan, the precursor to current and ongoing strategic planning.
The late 1970s and early 1980s also solidified the relationship between the CSFS and the State Board of Land Commissioners. By 1980, the CSFS was working on state lands under 10-year “silvicultural leases” that covered CSFS’ costs and provided funding for additional forest land improvement projects.
Wildfire’s Growing Role
Although the agency had been involved in rural fire assistance for many years, it was not until 1989 that wildland fire began to take on the pervasive role it plays today. As early as 1966, the CSFS launched the Emergency Fire Fund (EFF) with 16 county contracts and contributions of $16,000. The 1978 Murphy Gulch Fire west of Denver marked the fund’s first use. The CSFS did not begin active participation in interagency incident management teams or the national red card qualification system until 1976.
A statewide Incident Command System came to Colorado in 1981, followed by the first initial attack aircraft and interagency fire response agreements in 1986. But it was the 1989 Black Tiger Fire in Boulder County that was a sign of things to come. That event was the worst in 30 years and resulted in the loss of 60 structures. The Black Tiger Fire received both EFF assistance and a FEMA disaster designation, only the second time such a designation was enacted in Colorado’s history.
Emerging Forestry Issues Lead to Increased Legislative Activity
As the CSFS entered the decade of the 1990s, legislative activity at the state and national level resulted in significant program changes. The Colorado General Assembly passed a tax relief measure in the spring of 1990 for forest landowners actively managing their property, and gave the CSFS responsibility for assessing subsequent applications and compliance. Known as the Forest Agricultural Program, landowners enrolled in the program are expected to actively manage their land following objectives identified in a forest management plan developed specifically for their property.
In addition to the Forest Agricultural Program, Congress finalized the 1990 Farm Bill, which included programs such as Forest Stewardship, Forest Legacy and Urban and Community Forestry, and resulted in a subsequent influx of new funding for state forestry agencies.
By 1995, the Colorado State Forest Service had 95 employees, 15 district offices and a total budget of $4.5 million. The trend toward wildland fire that began in 1989 continued throughout the 1990s, fueled by events such as the 1994 Storm King Fire, 1996 Buffalo Creek Fire and the onset of record drought conditions that increased forest fire susceptibility across the state.
Wildfire Becomes Highest Priority
The dramatic 2000 fire season launched the CSFS into a scale and pace of activity previously unknown to the agency. Approximately 123,000 fires burned more than 8.4 million acres nationwide and sparked an outcry of public concern. Then-Pres. Bill Clinton responded to this concern by directing the development of a National Fire Plan, which Congress later supported with substantial funding for fire preparedness and suppression, and hazardous fuels reduction. The CSFS annual budget increased from $6.8 million to $12.1 million in a single year.
With an estimated 1 million Coloradans living in areas at high risk from wildland fire, the CSFS focused much of its attention on the wildland-urban interface and on projects designed to reduce hazardous fuels through cross-boundary landscape-scale management. The 2002 fire season, the worst in the state’s recorded history prior to the 2012 fire season, underscored the need for this approach. More than 2,000 fires burned 502,000 acres, forced the evacuation of 81,000 residents and destroyed hundreds of homes and other structures.
The CSFS provides partners and private landowners with technical assistance focused on fuels mitigation and educational programs that help individuals and communities implement FireWise practices and develop and implement Community Wildfire Protection Plans.
In 2012, the Colorado General Assembly passed HB 1283, which transferred the CSFS Fire Division to the state’s Department of Public Safety, effective July 1, 2012. The primary purpose of the transfer was to streamline the planning, training, public risk messaging and emergency support functions between the departments of local affairs and public safety regarding homeland security and emergency management activities.
Transferring wildland fire command and control operations from Colorado State University to the Colorado Department of Public Safety allowed the CSFS to further strengthen its role in providing technical forestry assistance. The role of the CSFS in providing scientifically sound forestry and wildfire prevention education and mitigation information remains central to our mission “to achieve stewardship of Colorado’s diverse forest environments for the benefit of present and future generations.”
Insect & Disease Issues
Insects and diseases have always been at the forefront for the Colorado State Forest Service since its founding. In 1955, with only seven staff members in the whole agency, the CSFS took over responsibility for forest insect and disease reporting from the Colorado Department of Agriculture. CSFS foresters started helping landowners battle bark beetles and other forest pests in 1956 and continue to do so today.
Many of the most impactful pests are bark beetles that are native to Colorado’s forests, including mountain pine beetle, spruce beetle and Douglas-fir beetle. Weather plays an important role in insect activity, and the trend in Colorado toward drought and warmer temperatures over recent decades has resulted in stressed trees that are vulnerable to attack from bark beetles and other forest health issues. Under the right weather, forest and other environmental conditions, populations of insects can increase rapidly and lead to epidemic levels, such as the outbreak of mountain pine beetles that affected about 80% of pine forests in Colorado from 1996-2014.
Along with bark beetles, defoliators such as the western spruce budworm and Douglas-fir tussock moth impact forests in Colorado by consuming the leaves of trees during their caterpillar stage of development. Insects and fungi that affect aspens are also concerning when they are widespread and not localized, and insects that attack and kill trees in communities, such as emerald ash borer, are destructive to forests in urban areas. The CSFS works with residents and communities to diagnose, treat and plan for forest insects and diseases, from the backyard to the backcountry.
The annual Report on the Health of Colorado’s Forests tracks and analyzes the latest trends in insects and diseases. Data for the report are generated through an annual aerial forest health survey conducted by the CSFS and USDA Forest Service, along with on-the-ground reports from CSFS foresters and forest health staff. View the forest health report, accompanying forest health story map, or insects and diseases webpage for the latest on insect and diseases activity and guidance for Colorado.
Addressing Priorities
The Colorado State Forest Service places substantial emphasis on fuels mitigation to reduce wildfire hazards and on wildfire prevention education with the objective of reducing risks to people and communities, while simultaneously improving forest condition. The CSFS partners with numerous agencies and organizations throughout Colorado to provide the most current information so landowners can make informed decisions about how best to achieve their stewardship objectives, including fuels mitigation and wildfire prevention.
State legislation reflects the importance of managing our forests so they will continue to provide the benefits on which we rely, including water quality and quantity, wildlife habitat, wood products and recreational opportunities, to name a few. The CSFS and the public continue to benefit from the strong support the Colorado General Assembly provides on forestry issues.
Legislature has focused on the following forestry-related issues:
- Forest management and bark beetle mitigation efforts to salvage merchantable timber and reduce wildland fire-related risks.
- Promotion of a forest industry that supports landscape-scale forest management efforts, and local economies and infrastructure.
- Support for the use of long-term stewardship contracts and other opportunities, such as the Good Neighbor Authority, that will contribute significantly to fuels mitigation and forest restoration efforts.
The CSFS delivers a range of programs, including forest management, technical assistance with wildland fuels mitigation, urban and community forestry, and educational programs to assist the efforts of our partners and private landowners to reduce vegetative fuels and create healthy forest conditions. The CSFS also provides staff support to the Division of Forestry within the Colorado Department of Natural Resources, per legislation passed in 2000.
In 2006, realignments at Colorado State University resulted in a closer connection between the CSFS and the Warner College of Natural Resources (WCNR). As a service and outreach agency within the WCNR, CSFS collaborates with CSU’s natural resource faculty to transfer knowledge gained from applied research to land managers, private landowners and other stakeholder
Complex Forestry Issues Link Past with Present
Complex forestry issues throughout Colorado’s history, as well as development in the wildland-urban interface, increasing demands for timely forestry information, and competing demands for state and federal funding have created numerous challenges for the CSFS. To maintain the ability to continue delivering relevant, timely information and technical assistance to Coloradans, it is imperative that the Colorado State Forest Service consider these challenges and prioritize use of limited resources.
As history has demonstrated, the CSFS is flexible, resilient and responsive to changing needs. The agency also is recognized as a leader in providing forestry information and education to Coloradans. It’s a proud legacy on which to build the next 50 years of history.