A local construction company’s project may be instrumental in the recovery of endangered and threatened fish species in Colorado.

Southwest Contracting Inc., of Cortez, recently finished a $6 million fish hatchery two miles west of Alamosa that has been dedicated to raising threatened and endangered fish, amphibian and mollusk species.

"It’s a critical effort, and for most species it would be impossible to restore them without these facilities," said Todd Malmsbury, spokesman for the Colorado Division of Wildlife.

The facility is the first of its kind in the United States and has put Colorado into a position of national leadership in the effort to recover endangered species and restore the diversity of our wildlife resources, said Malmsbury.

Steve Franchini, vice president of Southwest Contracting, and Tony Fitzgerald, Southwest’s site superintendent, were at the June 12 dedication ceremony led by Colorado Governor Bill Owens.

The project began last fall on a 760-acre site, formerly known as the Chiles Farms, in the San Luis Valley. The new property has been named the Playa Blanca State Wildlife Area, and will house both the hatchery and its manager.

The company built seven buildings, one covered pond, and four outdoor ponds on the site. Franchini said that there were eight Cortez workers building on the site, and 30 from Alamosa.

Once the hatchery opens, state biologists will begin locating and capturing populations of fish on the federal and state endangered, threatened and sensitive lists.

The top priority of the hatchery, according to Hatchery Manager Dave Schnoor, will be to capture warm-water fish species, such as the Colorado pikeminnow, bonytail chub, humpback chub and razorback sucker.

As the species are recovered, research will also be conducted on the water conditions and habitat of the fish. But further funding will be needed, according to Malmsbury, to protect critical habitat the fish need to survive.

The Colorado Division of Wildlife, the Colorado Water Conservation Board and Great Outdoors Colorado provided funds for the project.