Public Lands

Polis: Poll Confirms Support for Conservation Agenda

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PUBLIC NEWS SERVICE

By Eric Galatas

February 4, 2019

DENVER – Voters in Colorado and other western states continue to support conservation policies for publicly owned lands, putting them at odds with the Trump administration’s energy dominance agenda, according to the ninth annual Conservation in the West Poll from Colorado College.

Gov. Jared Polis says the poll’s results show a clear mandate to keep public lands accessible for outdoor recreation, which he sees as a vital part of the Colorado way of life.

“That’s really one of the reasons that people choose to live here, why people move here, why people visit our state,” Polis says. “Over 500,000 people work in outdoor recreation and tourism that puts food on the table for their families.”  Read more

Fisher’s Peak in Trinidad will open to the public, thanks to land purchase

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COLORADO SPRINGS INDEPENDENT

By Faith Miller

March 5, 2019

Just east of Interstate 25, a few miles north of the New Mexico border, 9,600-foot-tall Fisher’s Peak is a hidden gem in plain sight.

The Trinidad landmark has long been closed to the public. But thanks to a land purchase completed Feb. 28, the peak and the ranch it sits on will open for as-yet-undefined public use within a few years.

The Nature Conservancy and the Trust for Public Land, two nonprofit organizations focused on conservation and land access, bought Crazy French Ranch and will spend the next two years or so working with the city of Trinidad, Colorado Parks and Wildlife, Great Outdoors Colorado, and Trinidad State Junior College to develop a management plan for the peak-containing property. That could include opportunities for hiking, mountain biking, horseback riding and education, says Matthew Moorhead, director of business development and strategic partnerships for The Nature Conservancy.  Read more.

Letter: Bill an effort to celebrate state public lands

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CODY ENTERPRISE

February 27, 2019

To the editor:

Public lands in Wyoming and the West are, by definition, for everybody. These lands have been managed for multiple use by the people of our state, country and world for more than 50 years.

A simple effort to create a day of recognition of the diverse recreational benefits of all public lands has met resistance at the Wyoming Legislative session again this year.

Other states use annual Public Lands Day events to get people outside to participate in service projects and give something back to the natural resources they utilize throughout the year.  Read more.

Letters to the editor

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JACKSON HOLE NEWS & GUIDE

February 20, 2019

Celebrate public lands

Public lands in Wyoming and the West, are, by definition for everybody. These lands have been managed for multiple use by the people of our state, country and the world for more than 50 years.

A simple effort to create a day of recognition of the diverse recreational benefits of all public lands has met resistance at the Wyoming Legislative session again this year.

Other states use annual Public Lands Day events to get people outside to participate in service projects and give something back to the natural resources they utilize throughout the year.

A proposal to include multiple use in the title of the bill, and the official name of the annual day, ended up preventing the bill from advancing last year.  Read more

Poll finds support for public lands protections in the west

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Colorado voters back clean water, wildlife habitat

CASTLE ROCK NEWS PRESS ONLINE

HIGHLANDS RANCH HERALD ONLINE

WESTMINSTER WINDOW

LITTLETON INDEPENDENT

By Shanna Fortier

February 11, 2019

Colorado residents continue to support efforts to keep public lands protected and accessible, according to the ninth annual Colorado College State of the Rockies Project Conservation in the West Poll, which was released Jan. 31 and presented at the Outdoor Retailer Snow Show in Denver.

The poll surveyed the views of voters in Colorado and seven other Mountain West states — Arizona, Idaho,

Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming — on policies impacting the use and protection of public lands. The role of public lands and the outdoor way of life continued to be of deep importance to Colorado voters, with 73 percent of Coloradans viewing themselves as “outdoor recreation enthusiasts” and 69 percent labeling themselves as “conservationists.”  Read more

 

Going public

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Support for public lands, voiced in new poll, comes to life in legislation

By Tracy Chamberlin

February 7, 2019

Parks. Trails. Open space. Wilderness. All of these natural wonders across the West are key to outdoor recreation driving much of the economy and lifestyle of Coloradans.

 

In a recent poll, 73 percent of Colorado residents said they consider themselves outdoor recreation enthusiasts with 74 percent adding that being near public lands was one of the reasons they chose to live here. In addition, 90 percent believe the outdoor recreation economy is key to the future of the West. Read more.

Poll: Most Utahns Say Protecting Public Lands Is A Priority

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UTAH PUBLIC RADIO

By Mark Richardson

February 6, 2019

Utah voters expressed strong opinions in a new poll on issues such as climate change, protecting public lands and outdoor recreation.

In the ninth annual “Conservation in the West” poll from Colorado College, two-thirds of voters polled in eight Western states identified themselves as conservationists, and strongly endorsed policies that protect land, water and wildlife.  Read more

 

 

Colorado College poll finds voters back land protection

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COLORADO SPRINGS INDEPENDENT

By Faith Miller

February 6, 2019

The ninth annual Colorado College State of the Rockies Project Conservation in the West Poll shows Colorado voters embrace protection and accessibility of public lands and strongly disapprove of President Donald Trump’s agenda (including removing national monument protections, removing Clean Water Act safeguards for streams and wetlands and permitting increased oil and gas production on 80 percent of Western states’ “critical habitat” for the threatened sage grouse).

The poll surveyed voters in Colorado, Arizona, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming.  Read more.

Oil and gas leases in Beaverhead, Madison counties on hold

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MONTANA STANDARD

by Susan Dunlap

February 4, 2019

Oil and gas leasing on 12,889 acres in Beaverhead and Madison counties has been deferred indefinitely, a Bureau of Land Management official said Monday.

But that doesn’t mean the leases are dead forever.

Cornelia Hudson, BLM Dillon field office manager, said the agency got so many negative public comments last month on the proposed oil and gas leases that the BLM deferred those parcels.  Read more.

Poll: Westerners’ public lands views run counter to Trump energy agenda

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The DAILY SENTINEL

January 31, 2019

By Dennis Webb

A poll release Thursday by Colorado College suggests a disconnect between the priorities of western voters when it comes to public lands, and those of the Trump administration’s energy-dominance agenda.

The college’s 9th annual State of the Rockies survey also identified increasing concern among westerners about climate change.

The poll found that about two-thirds of respondents want Congress to ensure protection of water, air quality and wildlife habitat while providing opportunities to visit and recreate on … READ MORE