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Wild Colorado: Newsbriefs
News briefs
Compiled by Steve Bonowski and Vera Smith
San Juan Group open space forum
The CMC’s San Juan Group hosted an open space forum for residents of Durango and La Plata County on April 13. With a strong conservation thrust, the forum offered a good opportunity for residents to learn about a variety of growth issues facing the county. Highlights included presentations on proposed coal bed methane drilling in the HD Mountains near Bayfield; the proposed real estate developments at the Durango Mountain Resort ski area; and a proposed extension of the Colorado Trail into Durango that would intrude on a state wildlife area. The ski area real estate development is especially controversial because local activists have obtained enough signatures on petitions to require county commissioners to re-vote and possibly hold a public referendum on the issue.
Current wilderness issues from the Citizens Wilderness Proposal were covered along with an update status on the pending draft revision of the San Juan National Forest management plan and the project to preserve historic old mining buildings on Red Mountain Pass. Finally, participants were introduced to recent actions by various land trusts, including that of the Colorado Cattlemen’s Association, in trying to preserve land in the county via conservation easements and designation as open space.
Chris Paulson, Ken Beegles, amd Ken Marshall put on the program.
Wolf Creek Pass agreement dies
The CMC attended the final meeting of the Wolf Creek Pass working group on April 9. The workgroup was convened by the US Forest Service office in Del Norte in an attempt to resolve the growing conflicts between non-motorized and motorized winter recreationists on the pass.
The series of meetings had often been contentious, but snowmobilers gradually came to understand the concerns of the skier and snowshoer community. The two sides arrived at a tentative agreement to designate the north side of US 160 solely for non-motorized use, while the south side of the highway would be reserved for motorized use as well as for any skiers who didn’t mind the motor traffic.
Unfortunately, consensus was not achieved due to the unwillingness of hybrid skiers to give up motorized access in one area on the north side. Hybrid skiers are a fairly new phenomenon: individuals who use snowmobiles to access snowboard and ski areas further in the backcountry.
Vail Pass update
Another season has ended on Vail Pass. Cooperation between motorized and non-motorized users in honoring user separation on the pass generally seems to be working. There are still areas of motorized incursion around Janet’s Cabin/Searle Pass, behind the Shrine Mountain Inn, and near the east end of Commando Run. These “hot spots” will be a focus from the Vail Pass Task Force next winter. The snowmobile community plans to form a local snowmobile organization with the goal of educating motorized users. In general, most recreationists seem to agree that the modest use fee is worth having in order to reduce the user conflicts that had developed before the separation was enacted.
Moffat County land use update
The CMC continues to track the plans by Moffat County officials to assume management control of all Federal lands in the county, including Dinosaur National Monument and Brown’s Park National Wildlife Refuge. The Landscape Trust proposal was developed as an “alternative” to any designation of new wilderness areas in the county. While most land uses would remain under the Trust, wilderness specifically is ruled out. The Colorado Mountain Club remains strongly opposed to this plan (see related article in January-February 2002 Trail & Timberline).
Legislature opposes Recreation Fee Demo Program
On the last day of the 2002 session, the Colorado Senate passed a resolution by a vote of 31–3 opposing the federal Recreation Fee Demonstration Program. The Program, authorized by Congress six years ago as a demonstration program, allows federal land management agencies to charge recreational use fees. The vote complemented the unanimous vote in the Colorado House.
CMC intervenes in lawsuit
over winter use on Molas Pass
In May, the Colorado Mountain Club intervened on behalf of the defendants in a federal lawsuit filed by the Colorado Off-Highway Vehicle Coalition against the U.S. Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management challenging the agencies’ recent decision to separate motorized and non-motorized use on Molas Pass. The decision prohibited motorized use on two hundred acres surrounding Andrews Lake and restricted commercial use and grooming on an additional 2,500 acres east of the highway.
CMC files suit against Interior Department
As an absolute last resort after all of our requests for responses to the Department of Interior (DOI) went unanswered, the CMC, along with the Colorado Environmental Coalition and Earthjustice, filed suit against the DOI and the Bureau of Land Management asking the court to remove the illegal appointments to the Resource Advisory Councils [RACs]. We have asked the BLM to revise the appointment process to preclude the type of political manipulation that occurred in 2001. [Editor’s note: the Bureau of Land Management utilizes three resource advisory councils in Colorado, each with fifteen members, who give advice. See: “The Governor and Secretary Norton are stacking our RACs,” March-April 2002 T&T.