Upper Pine River Fire Protection District

Upper Pine River Fire Protection District is a local government entity based in Bayfield, Colorado, serving as an inter-municipal fire protection agency in La Plata and Archuleta Counties. The district is registered with the federal government to receive contract and grant awards and has maintained its SAM.gov registration since May 2006. The organization provides emergency services, fire protection, and emergency medical services to rural populations across approximately 284 square miles of the San Juan Basin region in southwestern Colorado.

The district has received limited federal contract work, with a single purchase order from the U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service Rocky Mountain Region in August 2023. This $1,500 firm fixed price contract, awarded without any set-aside designation, provided land and facility use services for a five-day period from August 3-8, 2023, in Durango, Colorado. The contract supported the Forest Service's fire protection and land management activities under the S8 Dry Lake program, utilizing the district's facilities and property to advance regional fire management objectives.

Upper Pine River Fire Protection District has been significantly more active in securing federal grant funding across multiple agencies and programs. Most recently, the district received a substantial $4,357,731 Cooperative Agreement from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Natural Resources Conservation Service in December 2025 through the Emergency Watershed Protection Program to address flooding impacts from the Vallecito flooding event through streambank protection, debris removal, and infrastructure protection measures in La Plata County. The district has also received multiple Project Grants including: a Department of Transportation Pipeline and Hazardous Material Safety Administration Pipeline Emergency Response Grant ($248,738 awarded September 2024) focused on training first responders in pipeline incident response; a Department of Interior Office of Wildland Fire grant (September 2025) for slip-on tanker units; a FEMA Fire Prevention and Safety grant (August 2024); and a Federal Highway Administration Safe Streets and Roads for All grant (June 2023) for community safety improvements. Additionally, the district has been a repeat recipient of Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) Rural EMS Training Grants and Education Department grants (awards in September 2024, September 2023, August 2022, and September 2021), totaling significant funding for expanding emergency medical services education, behavioral health training, and substance use disorder response capabilities across rural Colorado. The district also received a Department of Agriculture Forest Service Cooperative Agreement in September 2022 for fuels management and community wildfire protection planning across approximately 1,500 acres. Furthermore, the district has been a recipient of FEMA Assistance to Firefighters Grants in August 2022 and January 2021, supporting equipment and operational needs. These grant programs have consistently supported the district's mission to expand EMS education for underrepresented rural populations, enhance emergency responder capabilities, and promote landscape resilience through fuels management and community protection initiatives.