CORE Act is Reintroduced to Congress
Public lands bill would protect 420,000 acres in Colorado, including in San Juans
By: Sophie Stuber, Telluride Daily Planet
Critical public lands legislation for Colorado is back in session in Congress. US Sen. Michael Bennet (D-CO), Sen. John Hickenlooper (D-CO) and US Rep. Joe Neguse (D-CO) reintroduced the Colorado Outdoor Recreation and Economy (CORE) Act last week.
If passed, the CORE Act would give protections to about 420,000 acres of public land in Colorado — including 61,000 acres in the San Juan Mountains. Locally, the CORE Act would designate wilderness around Mount Sneffels and Mount Wilson, as well as establish a 21,000 acre Special Management Area in the Sheep Mountain zone. This would protect popular hiking destinations like Ice Lakes from future mining and protect important lynx habitat from development.
“Within this proposed designation are some of the most iconic and beloved segments of land in San Miguel County,” San Miguel County Commissioner Galena Gleason told the Daily Planet.
The CORE Act would also shield 6,590 acres of Naturita Canyon watershed from energy development with a proposed mineral withdrawal.
“I have witnessed first hand the incredible ecosystem that the Naturita Canyon supports and feel very strongly that protecting this land from extraction would be immensely beneficial. Many natural springs flow into Naturita Canyon and the biodiversity is notable. These wild, intact lands are rare and worth standing up for,” Gleason added.
Previously, the House of Representatives has passed the CORE Act five times with bipartisan support, but the bill has been unable to get through the Senate. Sen. Bennet and Rep. Neguse first introduced the CORE Act to Congress in 2019.
“Colorado’s public lands do more than fuel our economy — they are a cornerstone of our way of life. The CORE Act is the result of years of conversation and compromise to boost our economy and protect our public lands for future generations,” Bennet said in a statement.
Hickenlooper emphasized the collaborative origins of the bill.
“The CORE Act is a model for how legislation should be done,” Hickenlooper added. “Ranchers, hunters, hikers, and local officials all came together to protect our most sacred lands and invest in our outdoor recreation.”
Of the land protected by the bill, 71,000 acres are designated as new wilderness, and nearly 80,000 acres are for new recreation and conservation management areas that preserve existing outdoor uses, such as hiking and mountain biking.
“For years, Coloradans have rallied around the CORE Act, which aims to protect some of Colorado's most important landscapes,” Sheep Mountain Alliance program director Ruthie Boyd told the Daily Planet. “Everything about the CORE Act is homegrown and collaborative. It represents a hopeful solution to protect incredible landscapes across the state.”
Under former president Joe Biden’s administration, aspects of the CORE Act, including establishing the Camp Hale-Continental Divide National Monument and an agreement for a 20-year mineral withdrawal in the Thompson Divide, were signed into law.
“During my time in Congress, I’ve been proud to usher components of this bill across the finish line, including successfully advocating for the establishment of the Camp Hale-Continental Divide National Monument. But our fight continues,” Neguse said in a statement.
Boyd encouraged people to reach out to their representatives to voice support for the public lands bill.
“Now more than ever, it's so important for our senators to hear from their constituents about the importance of protecting these places. If you are looking for a way to take action right now, call your senators,” Boyd said.
Despite the Trump administration’s recent actions to dismantle many environmental protections — including rolling back clean energy projects, expanding mineral exploration and oil and gas drilling on public lands, and the mass firings of federal works — many in Colorado are still advocating for these protections.
“Though the current Congress is a difficult political landscape for public lands legislation, the reintroduction of the CORE Act shows Coloradans are not going anywhere when it comes to protecting our public lands,” Boyd said.
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