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Project ID:

24-2-05-5

Year:

2024

Date Started:

09/01/2024

Date Completed:

Title:

Colorado's Marshall Fire: Impacts and Recovery Over Time

Project Proposal Abstract:

1. Problem Statement
Colorado's Marshall Fire burned through Boulder County on December 30, 2021, destroying over 1000 homes and damaging hundreds more. The suburban communities affected by this disaster have strong stated commitments to both social equity and climate action. Faced with the reality of a climate-driven disaster, are these communities able to recover and rebuild in ways that live up to those values? Our research team's findings to date indicate that some population subgroups, particularly lower-income households, those with less insurance coverage, renters, and older adults, may be experiencing particular challenges in the recovery process. It is also clear that this process is far from over, and the decisions being made now (at about 1.5 years post-fire) will be crucial to determining medium- and long-term equity and resilience outcomes.

2. Objectives
Our Colorado-based research team has strong ties to the affected communities and assembled in the weeks following the Marshall Fire to collect longitudinal mixed-methods data on disaster impacts, policy preferences and participation, and recovery outcomes. These data include surveys and interviews with affected residents at multiple time points (~6 mos, ~1 year, and ~2 years post-fire), interviews with local decision-makers, and records of public meetings. We have also established strong working relationships with local governments, community organizations, and resident groups, and are collaborating with emergency, recovery, and resilience managers to co-develop recommendations to foster equity and enhance climate resilience in the affected areas and beyond.
The proposed research will continue to analyze our existing data and follow the Marshall Fire recovery process through years 3-5 post-fire. Over this period, we expect to see the majority of destroyed homes being rebuilt and reoccupied, as well as development and implementation of longer-term strategies aimed at building resilience to multiple climate-related hazards. By continuing and enhancing our longitudinal, mixed-methods analysis over this critical period, we will examine how disaster impacts and recovery outcomes are distributed across social groups, as well as evaluating policy participation and how this is affecting recovery and resilience decisions.

3. Benefits
Our project will advance the science on disaster recovery over the medium term by elucidating how disasters and recovery processes intersect with existing patterns of social inequity and how recovery policy and implementation decisions can reduce or exacerbate existing disparities. These results have direct policy implications for the affected communities and areas facing similar climate-driven challenges, and we will continue to work collaboratively with local partners, including our project's Equity Advisory Board, to tailor our deliverables to their decision-making and advocacy needs.

Principal Investigator:

Katherine L Dickinson

Agency/Organization:

University of Colorado-Denver

Branch or Dept:

Other Project Collaborators

Type	Name	Agency/Organization	Branch or Dept
Agreements Contact	Garrett A. Steed	University of Colorado-Denver	Grants and Contracts
Budget Contact	Garrett A. Steed	University of Colorado-Denver	Grants and Contracts