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A grant recently awarded by the group Keep it Colorado will help protect 2,565 acres of land adjacent to Mesa Verde National Park, the San Juan Scenic Byway and San Juan National Forest. The move is expected to preserve iconic views entering the park, support agricultural resiliency, protect significant archaeological sites and maintain critical wildlife habitat. . Comments from James Reimann, conservation director, Montezuma Land Conservancy.
Some three million acres of Colorado lands have been protected through land trusts and their partners, and new online resources launched by the group Keep it Colorado aims to help more families keep producing on their farms and ranches, and maintain their land for future generations. Erin Quinn, conservation director with the Aspen Valley Land Trust, said protecting lands through conservation easements now is a good idea for a number of reasons.
Recent awards for “Conservation Heroes” spotlight the collaborative vision and strategy which go into protecting Colorado's healthy vibrant landscapes, wildlife habitat, and local farms and ranches. "Sometimes we don't realize all the work that goes into making those places special. Protection or conservation of those lands and the wildlife that live there doesn't just happen by itself."
America the Beautiful, or 30 by 30, is not a land grab. Nobody is taking away farmers’ and ranchers’ private property rights. Conservation and conservation easements are voluntary. And conservation easements, which are legal agreements to protect land in perpetuity, create more — not fewer — options for landowners.
As summer rolls in across Colorado, the threats of wildfire, diminishing snowpack and prolonged drought weigh heavy on the minds of many residents who cherish the state's iconic landscapes and wildlife. Conservationists are encouraging people to get in touch with their local land trusts to be part of the climate solution.
More frequent and exponentially larger wildfires and prolonged drought already are impacting Colorado's agricultural lands and regional economies. To ensure communities can survive and thrive in a changing climate, a broad range of stakeholders are working to create the state's first-ever private lands conservation plan. Read the full story on Public News Service.
Most everyone is aware of the ecological benefits of conserving land – clean water, healthy plants and wildlife, and rich habitat for animals, birds and fish. But two other critical outcomes of conservation immediately rise to the top for me: a strong economy and climate change mitigation. Most Coloradans agree.
Who decides where a trail goes? What if the trail doesn’t go where I want it to go? What happens when people go off trail? Get answers to all of these questions and more. (Hint: Trails don’t just “happen.”) Here are some things people can keep in mind about trails - and what it will take to keep them beautiful, accessible and open.
In spite of the hardship of the unusual times we find ourselves in, our members have discovered some unique and exciting opportunities, and developed creative solutions they may never have imagined before. Let’s celebrate those successes and that optimism for the future. Here’s just a glimpse of what our land trusts have been up to.
August 1 is Colorado Day. On that day in 1876, President Ulysses S. Grant signed a proclamation admitting Colorado as a state. As we celebrate Colorado and all of its gifts, we think about the role conservation plays in keeping it special. Our thoughts also turn to the culture of conservation that will be required to keep Colorado wonderful into the future.
Over the past couple of months, I’ve seen how critical the outdoors and access to nature are to people around the world. Keep It Colorado has an opportunity to help make conservation a priority across the state. After all, that connection with the outdoors people are craving is made possible by conservation.
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