Pitkin County Open Space requests funding for boat/wader washing and education after mussel detections

Open Space & Trails staff asked the board to authorize supplemental funding to respond to recent detections of aquatic invasive species (quagga and zebra mussels) in the Roaring Fork/Colorado system.

Gary Tannenbaum, Pitkin County’s Open Space & Trails director, told the boards the county manages many river access points and that partners (Roaring Fork Conservancy, CPW, RUAPA and others) are coordinating a basin‑wide response. The Open Space request would cover education materials, signage at high‑use put‑ins and takeouts, and temporary water‑ and boat‑washing infrastructure at select sites (staff said the cleaning units are contained systems and would be run away from the river to prevent contamination of waterways).

Tannenbaum said the county’s Open Space and Trails Board unanimously recommended funding and emphasized that this first request is intended to get the county’s river‑access sites engaged with the broader regional effort. Roaring Fork Conservancy and RUAPA already operate boat‑washing work at major ramps (staff referenced ongoing work at busy takeouts), and county staff said they will coordinate materials and locations to avoid redundancy.

Board members asked practical and operational questions — how portable stations handle waste water, how rafts and boats would be cleaned, and who would maintain the units — and staff said details (placement, maintenance, and partner roles) would be refined after initial funding is approved. Commissioners expressed broad support for an initial allocation but asked staff to coordinate closely with regional partners and to return with an implementation plan.

What’s next: staff will finalize a scope and partner commitments, then bring a budget supplemental to the board for formal approval at a subsequent hearing.