I’d like to thank U.S. Senator Michael Bennet and U.S. Rep. Joe Neguse for introducing a state-wide land protection bill into Congress. It would protect 400,000 acres, and it unites and improves four previously introduced bills: the Continental Divide Recreation, Wilderness, and Camp Hale Legacy Act, the San Juan Mountains Wilderness Act, the Thompson Divide Withdrawal and Protection Act and the Curecanti National Recreation Area Boundary Establishment Act.
Of the land protected, about 73,000 acres are new wilderness areas, and nearly 80,000 acres are new recreation and conservation management areas that preserve existing outdoor uses, such as hiking and mountain biking.
The bill also includes a first-of-its-kind National Historic Landscape to honor Colorado’s military legacy, and it prohibits new oil and gas development in areas important to ranchers and sportsmen.
Wouldn’t it be great if U.S. Senator Cory Gardner and U.S. Rep. Scott Tipton would also act for the people of Colorado and their lands by supporting this bill?
Kay Delanoy
Eagle