Upper CO Wild and Scenic Alternative Plan gets Federal approval

Excellent news on the Upper Colorado River today. The Records of Decision from both the Forest Service and the BLM supporting, and approving our 8 year effort to create a Wild and Scenic Rivers Alternative stakeholder plan.

Since 2007, the Upper Colorado Wild & Scenic Stakeholder Group has been working on a plan to protect and enhance paddling and fishing along nearly 80 remarkable miles of the Upper Colorado River’s mainstem between Kremmling and Glenwood Springs.

It’s a truly important stretch of the Colorado for a variety of users, especially us paddlers, and it’s our goal to balance permanent protection of the river and flexibility for meeting water needs at our homes and farms.

The Record of Decision sets the official process in motion, but there’s more work to be done. We have to keep working to ensure that the Wild and Scenic alternative is the best it can be. As Roy Smith of the BLM said in an email today:

“I believe relying on the stakeholder plan in concert with USFS administrative management authorities will provide the best level of protection for the Colorado River’s free flowing condition, ORVs, classification, and water quality... I believe this decision will also provide certainty for stakeholder’s water yield and flexibility for future management on such a complex river system as the Colorado River.”

We second that, and we look forward to next steps in working collaboratively with this diverse, but determined, group of stakeholders for our Colorado River.