Speak Up - Oil & Gas Task Force Meeting in Durango THURSDAY

The meetings are open to the public and comments will be accepted Thursday evening from 5-7 pm. This is a critical opportunity for us to voice our experiences and concerns with oil and gas development in our community. The majority of meetings will be held on the front range. Show up and ensure western Colorado is heard! Please see below for more details and talking points.

Changes to Hermosa Bill Threaten Protections

On September 18th, the House Committee on Natural Resources significantly amended the Hermosa Creek Watershed Protections Act, the consensus-based language our community's diverse stakeholders created to protect the watershed. See below for more information and how to take action.

Governor's Oil and Gas Task Force meets in Durango

Opportunity for PUBLIC COMMENT

We are reeling from how quickly the House Natural Resources Committee pulled the rug out from under the Hermosa Creek Watershed Protection Act. Revealing the amended bill just 36 hours prior to their September 18th vote, they swiftly undermined six years of community effort creating consensus among diverse stakeholders.  Local officials, stakeholders, businesses and individuals are outraged that such significant alterations were conducted behind closed doors.  Until these amendments were made, the bill was a model for local consensus-driven lands protection legislation.  

Despite rhetoric from Republicans that local communities, not Washington, should be making land management decisions, their actions indicate ideology trumps democracy.  The already eroding credibility of representatives in Washington is now in serious doubt in a community where they they have replaced harmony with discord.  The implications are huge as the efforts of our community to come together to support protection of a beloved watershed are being rebuffed by Washington power brokers.

Learn More:

• Our Press Release
• Durango Herald editorial
• Hermosa Creek Fact Sheet
• Hermosa Legislation History
• Durango Herald Article

Take Action

• Call Tipton's D.C. Office: 202-225-4761
• Write a letter to the editor
• Email Tipton's Office (through his website)

Talking Points

• Completely  restore consensus language the diverse array of stakeholders in our community worked 6 years to create.
• Support our grassroots approach to legislation and reject the top-down approach pushed by the House Natural Resources Committee leadership.
• The lack of transparency and communication with which the bill was substituted is disappointing and unacceptable.  Stakeholders were not consulted regarding changes to the original bill.  

  HD Mountains are Under Siege...Again

San Juan National Forest is trying to open 7 new drilling sites in the HD Mountains without doing an environmental assessment as promised.  Rather than evaluate the environmental impact of this drilling - or let the public have input - the agency is trying to approve the drilling using an internal administrative action called Categorical Exclusion.  We are submitting comments to insist on an environmental assessment.  Join us!  Comments DUE FRIDAY, JULY 25th.  Learn more.  Details from the Forest Service

SJCA Submits Comments on Deeply Flawed Draft EIS of Four Corners Power Plant 

San Juan Citizens Alliance joined Sierra Club, Diné Citizens Against Ruining Our Environment, Center for Biological Diversity and Western Environmental Law Center in submitting comprehensive comments cataloguing alarming deficiencies in the Draft EIS.  Read the Press Release

Read Full Comments

Hermosa Creek Watershed Protection Act Introduced With Bipartisan Support

Sen. Michael Bennet (D-CO) and Rep. Scott Tipton (R, CO-3) introduced legislation that would protect one of Colorado’s most revered landscapes – the Hermosa Creek watershed in the San Juan National Forest. The Hermosa Creek Watershed Protection Act would protect more than 100,000 acres of incredible wildlife habitat and ensure the future of the area’s wildly popular recreational opportunities. Read More     www.hermosacreek.org

Click here to go to Sen. Bennet's website for the full text of the bill and to view a map of the proposed protections.

Long Overdue Analysis of Four Corners Power Plant Complex Begins

The federal Office of Surface Mining and Reclamation Enforcement has initiated the preparation of an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) to analyze the coal-fired Four Corners Power Plant, the adjacent Navajo Mine, and transmission corridors.  Read More

Group Works to Increase Resilience of Mixed Conifer

With fires raging in Colorado this summer, awareness has grown dramatically about the connection between forest health and our daily life and well being. Read More

Volunteers Tackle Fen Restoration at Ophir Pass

In summer 2012, the Alliance joined with diverse non-profit, business and agency partners to carry out an intensive hands-on restoration of a 1.6 acre fen at Ophir Pass. A fen is a type of wetland fed primarily by groundwater, rich in nutrients and plants that accumulate to form a deep layer of peat.  Read More

BLM Proposes Leasing Lands for Oil and Gas Development

The Bureau of Land Management is proposing leasing of lands in western La Plata County and eastern Montezuma County, primarily south of Highway 160 in the area from Hesperus to Mancos Hill. The proposed lease areas also include parcels adjacent to Canyons of the Ancients National Monument. SJCA has been actively involved in evaluating the leases, providing detailed comments to the BLM, and providing information to our members and interested citizens. Read More

View maps and see where we work