Form 990 for tax year 2023

Totals

Total revenue

$2,115,661

Total expenses

$2,099,339

Contributions and grants received

$1,601,538

Grants paid

$0

Program service revenue

$455,469

Investment income

$9,588

Other revenue

$49,066

Total assets, end of year

$2,088,380

Total liabilities, end of year

$919,968

Net assets or fund balances, end of year

$1,168,412

Program services expenses (Part IX)

$1,580,187

Management and general expenses

$302,493

Fundraising expenses

$216,659

Program service expenses (Part III)

$1,580,187

Program services were 75.3% of total expenses calculated — Part IX's program-services column over total expenses, both as filed.

Line items

Every line the filer filed in Parts VIII, IX and X, as filed and in filed order. Blank columns are left out, and the lines are not forced to add up to the totals above.

Mission and programs · 2023

• SUSTAINABLE TRAILS - AT WRV, WE BELIEVE IN REROUTING UNSUSTAINABLE TRAILS AWAY FROM SENSITIVE WILDLIFE AND CULTURAL SITES TO AVOID HARMING VALUABLE RESOURCES. OUR APPROACH INVOLVES SETTING A PRECEDENT BY STOPPING OFF- HIGHWAY VEHICLE (OHV) TRESPASS WHILE PERMITTING PEDESTRIAN TRAFFIC. EFFORTS INCLUDE CLOSING AND RESTORING OLD TRAILS, CREATING NEW SECTIONS, AND IMPLEMENTING EROSION PREVENTION METHODS. WRV ORGANIZES GROUPS OF TRAINED VOLUNTEERS, KNOWN AS CROSSCUT SAWYERS, WHO CLEAR WILDERNESS TRAIL CORRIDORS TO ENSURE THEY REMAIN ACCESSIBLE AND SAFE FOR VISITORS. IN 2023, THEY BUCKED AND REMOVED 1,003 DOWNED TREES FROM 16 MILES OF TRAILS. OVER OUR 25 YEARS OF OPERATIONS, VOLUNTEERS HAVE COMPLETED OVER 214 MILES OF TRAIL WORK, INCLUDING AN IMPRESSIVE 20 MILES OF TRAILS IN 2023.

  Expenses $586,075 · Revenue $225,000

• YOUTH & FAMILIES - WRV PROVIDES DIVERSE YOUTH AND THEIR FAMILIES WITH ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION SERVICE LEARNING. THE PROGRAM STARTS WITH BUILDING KNOWLEDGE AND AWARENESS CLOSE TO HOME AND PROGRESSES TO CRITICAL THINKING, PROBLEM-SOLVING, AND DECISION-MAKING IN THE FIELD. MONTHLY LESSONS AND ACTIVITIES ARE FOCUSED ON CULTURALLY RELEVANT SUBJECTS INCLUDING RESTORATION, OUTDOOR SKILLS, AND CAREERS IN NATURAL RESOURCES. WRV OFFERS A PAID YOUTH CORPS PROGRAM IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THE CITY OF LAFAYETTE, WHERE YOUTH LEARN RESTORATION TECHNIQUES, NATURAL SCIENCE, TEAMWORK, AND LEADERSHIP. MOST OF WRV'S YOUTH & FAMILIES PROGRAMMING IS OFFERED IN BOTH ENGLISH AND SPANISH. IN 2023, OVER 550 YOUTH ENGAGED IN RESTORATION AND LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT, CREATING VALUABLE EXPERIENCES.

  Expenses $290,825 · Revenue $67,829

• NATURAL HABITATS - WRV'S PRIMARY RESTORATION PROGRAM ADDRESSES A WIDE RANGE OF NEEDS ACROSS OUR REGION, INCLUDING DESIGNATED WILDERNESS AREAS, URBAN NATURAL SPACES, MOUNTAINS, AND PLAINS. WE STRIVE FOR INNOVATION BY EXPLORING NEW RESTORATION TECHNIQUES, WITH A RECENT FOCUS ON NATURAL CLIMATE SOLUTIONS LIKE ZEEDYK STRUCTURES. WE COLLABORATE WITH LOCAL FARMS TO ENHANCE HABITAT DIVERSITY AND IMPLEMENT CLIMATE-SMART SOLUTIONS IN AREAS THAT TYPICALLY LACK HABITAT VALUE BUT OFFER SIGNIFICANT POTENTIAL. IN 2023, OUR DEDICATED VOLUNTEERS PLANTED OVER 11,262 PLANTS, SHRUBS, AND TREES TO REBUILD SOIL AND PROVIDE RESOURCES FOR NATIVE SPECIES. VOLUNTEERS ALSO INSTALLED 164 SEDIMENT AND MOISTURE-RETAINING STRUCTURES IN WATERWAYS TO MITIGATE EROSION AND PRESERVE CRITICAL RESOURCES.

  Expenses $290,778 · Revenue $76,450

• HEALTHY FORESTS -COLORADO'S FORESTS HAVE FACED CATASTROPHIC FIRES DUE TO CLIMATE CHANGE AND DECADES OF FIRE SUPPRESSION. HOWEVER, WRV IS ACTIVELY INVOLVED IN PREVENTING FLOODS AND MUDSLIDES AND RESTORING THE FUNCTION OF THE NATURAL SYSTEM IN BURN SCARS. WE EMPLOY METHODS SUCH AS SEEDING, MULCHING, AND CREATING EROSION BARRIERS IN THE STEEP UPPER SLOPES OF THE WATERSHED. ADDITIONALLY, TRAINED VOLUNTEERS USE CHAINSAWS TO REDUCE FIRE RISK IN THE WILDLAND-URBAN INTERFACE AND REMOVE INVASIVE TREE SPECIES LIKE RUSSIAN OLIVE. IN 2023, WRV VOLUNTEERS MADE A DIFFERENCE BY STABILIZING THREE ACRES OF SEVERELY BURNED SLOPES. OUR DEDICATED SAWYERS THINNED EIGHT ACRES OF FOREST. THESE EFFORTS CONTRIBUTE TO THE RESTORATION OF HEALTHY FORESTS, THE RETURN OF NATIVE SPECIES, AND THE MITIGATION OF FIRE-RELATED RISKS 2023 EXPENSE 77,315 REVENUE 0 VITAL RIVERS - WATERWAYS ARE ESSENTIAL FOR OUR COMMUNITIES AND SUPPORT OVER 75% OF COLORADO'S WILDLIFE. THEY PROVIDE OPPORTUNITIES FOR RESIDENTS AND TOURISTS TO ENJOY ACTIVITIES LIKE FISHING, RAFTING, AND BIRD WATCHING. MOREOVER, CLEAN DRINKING WATER IS CRUCIAL. OVER WRV'S 25-YEAR HISTORY, OUR DEDICATED VOLUNTEERS HAVE SUCCESSFULLY RESTORED OVER 66 MILES OF STREAM CHANNEL AND SHORELINE, ALONG WITH OVER 89 ACRES OF WETLANDS. RECENT EFFORTS HAVE USED BEAVER MIMICRY TO JUMP-START THE RECOVERY OF STREAMS THROUGH NATURAL PROCESSES THAT REQUIRE LESS INTENSIVE ENGINEERING AND RELY MORE ON THE SYSTEM TO GUIDE ITS RETURN TO HEALTH. THIS WORK CAN BE PAIRED WITH FOREST THINNING, WHICH IN TURN PROVIDES THE MATERIALS FOR THE INSTREAM RESTORATION. IN 2023 ALONE, WRV VOLUNTEERS RESTORED 8,675 FEET OF STREAM CHANNEL AND SHORELINE, MAKING A SIGNIFICANT CONTRIBUTION TO THE PRESERVATION AND RESTORATION OF VITAL WATERWAYS. 2023 EXPENSES 102,037 REVENUE COMMUNITY BUILDING AND TRAINING- IN 2023, WRV ESTABLISHED AND NURTURED A DEDICATED AND HIGHLY SKILLED COMMUNITY OF VOLUNTEERS AND DONORS WHO ARE COMMITTED TO CARING FOR PUBLIC, PROTECTED, AND ECOLOGICALLY SIGNIFICANT LANDS. THROUGH THEIR IN-KIND LABOR VALUED AT OVER 947,800, THIS GROUP COMPLETED AN IMPRESSIVE 190 RESTORATION PROJECTS. THESE EFFORTS POSITIVELY IMPACTED 773 ACRES OF HABITAT IN 2023. IN 2023, WRV HOSTED 29 COURSES, TRAINING 415 VOLUNTEERS IN SKILLS INCLUDING RESTORATION DESIGN, CREW LEADERSHIP, TRAIL MAINTENANCE AND CONSTRUCTION, AND MORE. MOREOVER, IN 2023, WRV CONDUCTED ITS THIRD YEAR OF SPANISH/ENGLISH BILINGUAL LEADERSHIP TRAINING, RESULTING IN THE ENGAGEMENT OF 412 VOLUNTEERS USING SPANISH. THIS INITIATIVE HAS FOSTERED GREATER INCLUSION AND PARTICIPATION WITHIN OUR VOLUNTEER COMMUNITY, FURTHER EXPANDING OUR IMPACT. 2023 EXPENSES 128,465 REVENUE 17,356 NATIVE SEEDS - RESTORATION PROJECTS RELY ON A DIVERSE SUPPLY OF NATIVE TREES, SHRUBS, GRASSES, AND WILDFLOWERS WELL-SUITED TO THRIVE IN OUR REGION. PEOPLE FROM ALL BACKGROUNDS JOIN US TO COLLECT, CLEAN, AND CULTIVATE THE NATIVE SEEDS FOR THIS PURPOSE. VOLUNTEERS ALSO ASSIST IN NURTURING PLANTS IN OUR GREENHOUSE AND NURSERY. THROUGHOUT WRV'S 25-YEAR HISTORY, DEDICATED VOLUNTEERS HAVE CONTRIBUTED AN INCREDIBLE 45,806 HOURS TO NATIVE SEED COLLECTION AND SPREAD UNTOLD MILLIONS OF SEEDS IN 2023, VOLUNTEERS DEVOTED OVER 1,958 HOURS TO COLLECTING NATIVE SEEDS, WHICH WILL BE GROWN AND UTILIZED IN FUTURE PROJECTS. IN 2023, VOLUNTEERS CONTINUED PONDEROSA PINECONE COLLECTION, ADDRESSING THE RECENT SCARCITY OF PONDEROSA SEEDLINGS FOR POST-FIRE PLANTING IN OUR REGION. THIS INITIATIVE HIGHLIGHTS OUR COMMITMENT TO RESPONDING TO ARISING RESTORATION NEEDS. 2023 EXPENSES 61,217 REVENUE 33,413 INVASIVE WEEDS - INVASIVE WEEDS POSE A THREAT BY DISPLACING NATIVE PLANTS AND ANIMALS AND DISRUPTING NATURAL SYSTEMS. AT WRV, OUR FOCUS IS ON ERADICATING WEEDS THAT ARE LEGALLY MANDATED FOR REMOVAL. THROUGHOUT OUR HISTORY, WRV'S DEDICATED VOLUNTEERS HAVE SUCCESSFULLY WEEDED A REMARKABLE 7,530 ACRES. VOLUNTEERS' HARD WORK SIGNIFICANTLY REDUCED THE POPULATION OF MEDITERRANEAN SAGE BY MORE THAN 95% ACROSS HUNDREDS OF ACRES. IN ADDITION, WRV'S INNOVATIVE PARTNERSHIP WITH PRIVATE LANDOWNERS HAS EFFECTIVELY ADDRESSED THE MYRTLE SPURGE POPULATIONS ON THOUSANDS OF ACRES THAT BORDER PUBLIC LANDS. THANKS TO THESE AND MANY OTHER PROJECTS, THOUSANDS OF RESIDENTS ARE NOW EQUIPPED WITH THE KNOWLEDGE TO IDENTIFY AND SAFELY REMOVE THESE NOXIOUS WEEDS, PREVENTING FURTHER DAMAGE TO NATIVE HABITATS. IN 2023 ALONE, VOLUNTEERS WEEDED A TOTAL OF 453 ACRES, MAKING A SUBSTANTIAL IMPACT. 2023 EXPENSES 43,475, REVENUE 35,421

  Expenses $412,509 · Revenue $86,190

As filed on the 2023 return. The filer continues this part on Schedule O, which is not shown here.

Listed in Part VII

Compensation is as filed in Part VII: reportable pay from this organization and from related organizations, other compensation, and hours per week. The total, marked calculated, is our sum of the three dollar columns, with a blank column counted as $0; the form itself has no total. On a Form 990-EZ the columns are Part IV's instead, and on a Form 990-PF Part VIII's — compensation, contributions to benefit plans, and expense account — and the total sums those.

Grants on this return

No itemized grants to organizations on this return.

Provenance

Return type

form_990

Tax year

2023

Filed

23 August 2024

IRS schema version

2023v5.0

Source object

202412399349300141

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