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Obama, Ritter get more than 200,000 requests to protect Colorado’s roadless areas
“Don’t Sell Colorado Short” road show ends 10-city tour in Denver
October 1, 2009
Contacts: Pete Kolbenschlag, Colorado’s Forest Legacy, 970-261-0678
DENVER-More than 200,000 messages calling for protection of Colorado’s national forest roadless areas have been received by the Obama administration and Governor Bill Ritter as of today, according to organizers of the “Don’t Sell Colorado Short” road show. The road show ended here in Civic Center Park, after a three-week tour to the Western Slope and back, spreading the word about a plan proposed by the state of Colorado that would leave pristine national forests here with less protection than those in other states.
The call was echoed in Washington, DC, as Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA) and Representative Jay Inslee (D-WA) are expected to introduce bipartisan legislation today, supported by 25 senators and over 150 House members, to codify the 2001 Roadless Rule.
The “Don’t Sell Colorado Short” road show itself collected nearly 500 photos and personal messages on a 16-foot-long wall about the state’s proposed rule, which would open up more than 4.4 million acres of pristine backcountry in Colorado to new roads, logging, oil and gas drilling, and coal mining. Ralliers at Civic Center Park displayed the wall of personal testimonials, along with some of the thousands of comments that came from letters, postcards, and emails to Ritter and Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack.
“At farmers markets and street corners, universities and local stores, people stepped up to have their pictures taken and messages of support sent for protecting Colorado’s national roadless lands,” said Lisa Smith, one of the two crew members who accompanied the road show on its tour about the state. “The saying is that a picture tells of thousands words—Here we have 500 photos of Coloradans, all stating unequivocally that our roadless national forests should be managed to strong national standards.”
An alliance of Colorado conservation organizations sponsored the tour including the Colorado Mountain Club, Colorado Environmental Coalition, Western Colorado Congress, San Juan Citizens Alliance, Colorado Wild, Wilderness Workshop, and High Country Citizens Alliance. These groups are concerned that the proposal could open up Colorado’s best backcountry to road-building for mining, logging and drilling and give Colorado’s roadless national forests fewer protections than those in any other state.
“When the comment period closes tomorrow, Secretary Vilsack and Governor Ritter will have received ten thousand comments from Colorado and more than 200,000 from across America calling for Colorado’s national forests to be managed to the same high standards as all national forest roadless areas.” said Bryan Martin, Conservation Director of Colorado Mountain Club. “Like National Parks and other protected public lands, our backcountry national forests are among America’s great assets and Colorado treasures. Today, thousands and thousands of citizens are calling on both administrations to adequately protect our roadless lands legacy.”
The Colorado roadless plan originated with the Bush administration, and is meant to replace the 2001 Roadless Rule only in Colorado. The 2001 Roadless Rule, which protects roughly 60 million acres of America’s remaining undeveloped national forestland, and 4.4 million acres in Colorado, was upheld in federal court last month, but the state of Colorado has said it will continue pursuing a proposal considerably less protective than the 2001 rule, with roadbuilding exemptions for coal mining and gas drilling, among other environmentally harmful activities. The comments coming from across the country and within Colorado today press for the Obama administration to reaffirm the roadless rule as law of the land and to ensure that Colorado’s national forests are as well protected as those in other states.
The rally followed yesterday’s confirmation hearing for Harris Sherman – Executive Director of the Colorado Department of Natural Resources, the agency proposing the Colorado rule – as Undersecretary of Agriculture, overseeing the U.S. Forest Service.
The state-initiated comment period on Colorado’s proposed rule ends Saturday, October 3.
