Contractors working near Longmont’s Wastewater Treatment Plant discovered this large turtle during excavation work this week along the St. Vrain Creek. They carefully scooped up the turtle in a construction loader bucket and relocated it back into the creek. The video clip below shows the turtle safely swimming away and continuing on its way.

Wildlife including birds, fish, mink–and this turtle–continue to survive and thrive along the St. Vrain Creek during flood mitigation work on the Resilient St. Vrain project throughout this area.

One goal of the project is to complete the work in an environmentally responsible manner. This includes maintaining or enhancing the natural habitat for wildlife and fish, as well as creating wetland areas to help clean water that makes its way into the creek after storms or by runoff from more developed areas.

Once the project is complete, the creek channel will be more resilient to future flooding of up to 100-year levels, which will help protect people and property from future flood damage.