New Colorado wilderness held hostage; Conservation PAC formed

After the budget battles of the last few years, it’s clear that Congress is fiscally dysfunctional, but our elected lawmakers also face challenges in other areas — including finding the political will to support public land preservation bills that have local bipartisan support. That includes several proposals in Colorado, where the Hermosa Creek Watershed Protection Act, the San Juan Mountains Wilderness Act and the Browns Canyon National Monument and Wilderness Act are all stalled in the fog of partisan gridlock. In numerous hearings, Republican congressmen like Rob Bishop (Utah) and Doc Hastings (Washington) have publicly stated their opposition to wilderness designation and environmental protection in general. The opposition to any meaningful land preservation measures is mostly based on a visceral strain of anti-federalism that runs deep in the GOP. But a pair of Coloradans with deep political roots are hoping to tilt the balance toward preservation with a targeted political action campaign aimed at supporting candidates who can find common ground on land preservation. In January, former Interior Secretary Ken Salazar teamed up with conservation philanthropist Louis Bacon to launch America’s Conservation PAC. In just a couple of months, the group has raised about $200,000, according to executive director Will Shaffroth, who helped establish Great Outdoors Colorado as a force for conservation in the state...more