Denver Water is throwing its weight behind a proposed ballot initiative that would ask voters to redirect a portion of state sales tax revenue on sleeping bags, hiking boots and skis to help fight wildfires, reduce risk of additional blazes, and restore mountain watersheds already damaged by fire. It’s a rare move for the state’s largest water provider, which serves 1.5 million customers in the metro area, and has been hard hit by major blazes, with thousands of acres of land scorched and reservoirs filled with debris. … For the past 20 years, as deep droughts have periodically gripped the state, wildfires have emerged as a major threat to the mountain watersheds that deliver fresh water across the state, from Durango, to Aurora, Denver and Fort Collins.

Other water and wildfire news:

• FOX13 (Salt Lake City): Communities that survived the Widemouth 2 Fire now prepare for floods
• KRCC (Colorado Springs, Colo.): After fire and floods the tiny community of Beulah braces for the next onslaught
• Marin Independent Journal (San Rafael, Calif.): Opinion: Prevent wildfires without abandoning safety, environmental protections