REAL WORK
READY PROJECTS
Links:
Problem:
Wildfire and drought are tightening their grip on the Colorado River Basin. Organizations doing restoration work can't access the financing to do it at scale.
Solution:
The Western Landscapes Restoration Investment Facility offers tailored loans to accelerate restoration across the basin.
Funding sought:
$50 million
Type of funding:
Program-Related Investment
Contact:
Jason Lee, Finance Senior Manager
Email:
jason@blueforest.org
Links:
Problem:
Basin forests are choked with dead wood and overgrowth that fuel severe wildfires, and no business model exists to pay for cleanup at scale.
Solution:
The Forests for Water Biochar Program uses mobile units to convert forest waste into carbon-locking biochar, selling the resulting credits to cover cleanup costs and grow local wildfire-reduction businesses.
Funding sought:
$755,400
Type of funding:
Recoverable Grant
Contact:
Victoria Lockhart, Director of Reforestation
Email:
vlockhart@climatetrust.org
Links:
Problem:
Native American Tribes across the basin have been shut out of capital, leaving vital restoration work undone.
Solution:
BlueCommons’ Tribal Water Infrastructure and Restoration Fund works alongside Native American Tribes to complete water projects across the Colorado River Basin.
Funding sought:
$5 million
Type of funding:
Program-Related Investment; Recoverable Grant
Contact:
Air Copeland, Executive Director
Email:
acopeland@thebluebank.org
Links:
Problem:
Agricultural lands with senior water rights sell every few weeks, and each sale can permanently close the door on restoring water to a river.
Solution:
The Facilitated Ranch and Farm Transfer program uses a buy-protect-innovate-sell model to keep farms working while committing a share of senior water rights back to the river.
Funding sought:
$10 million
Type of funding:
Program-Related Investment; Grant; Recoverable Grant
Contact:
Blake Mamich, Programs Director
Email:
bmamich@coloradowatertrust.org
Links:
Problem:
Drought, climate change, and development are draining water from farms in the Colorado River Basin. As land and streams dry up, communities face economic and ecological decline.
Solution:
Colorado West Land Trust's Risk to Resilience program keeps the water and land intact through the purchase of irrigated farmland, improving it for water conservation and habitat, and selling it to farmers under conservation agreements that keep water connected to the land. This market-based solution could be implemented in various regions under different conditions at scale, elevating the impact.
Funding sought:
$10 million
Type of funding:
Program-Related Investment; Recoverable Grant
Contact:
Paige Byron, Development Director
Email:
paige@cowestlandtrust.org
A Subsidiary of The Freshwater Trust
Problem:
Farmers are already navigating labor shortages, increasing costs, and declining prices. On top of their day job, it’s often too slow and complicated for them to access needed incentives.
Solution:
Irrigation Incentives operates a streamlined, scalable system that delivers irrigation upgrades to farmers at speed and scale while maximizing regional water results.
Funding sought:
$5-15 million
Type of funding:
Program-Related Investment; Grants
Contact:
Tim Wigington, Vice President for Finance and Policy
Email:
tim@thefreshwatertrust.org
