West Plum Creek is one of the last relatively unaltered transition zone streams on Colorado's Front Range, and is perhaps the best remaining example of this type of habitat. It is home to several declining eastern plains fish species, as well as the Northern Leopard Frog and the Preble’s meadow jumping mouse. 

West Plum Creek has long been identified as an important conservation priority; as early as 1996, the Colorado Natural Heritage Program identified West Plum Creek as having “an extraordinary number of rare or imperiled species, demonstrating that [West Plum Creek] represents a significant proportion of Douglas County’s biological diversity.”

Colorado Parks and Wildlife, alongside partners including River Network, Douglas County Division of Open Space and Natural Resources, the Chatfield Watershed Authority, and others see a need for a Stream Management Plan to assess the quality of native fish habitat, improve water quality in downstream lakes, better understand the creek's hydrology and identify voluntary opportunities in land and water management. 

This project builds on years of aquatic data collection by Colorado Parks and Wildlife and others to fully document existing conditions and identify risks to fish populations that may threaten the persistence of these State‐listed species in the watershed. The primary objective of this first phase is to assess the health of the watershed, and how to maintain its integrity into the future.