Take action to strengthen protections for CO big game

Posted on by Alison Gallensky
Mule Deer in Browns Park National Wildlife Refuge with the Diamond Breaks Wilderness Study Area in the background. Image courtesy of John Mullen.

The Bureau of Land Management (the Bureau) is in the process of amending its management plans across Colorado to better protect big game: elk, mule deer, pronghorn, and bighorn sheep. The Bureau manages 8.3 million surface acres and 4.7 million acres of mineral estate extending to every corner of the state. The Bureau has the opportunity, through this planning process, to implement landscape-level protections for big game habitat and consider comprehensive updates to its oil and gas program in Colorado.

Comments Due Tuesday, February 6

Click below to easily submit pre-prepared comments that you can personalize as you wish.

Submit Comments

Or use the resources below to compose your own comments and submit them through the Bureau of Land Management’s ePlanning site:

ePlanning Site

Background

On November 9, 2023, the Bureau published a Draft Resources Management Plan amendment and associated Environmental Impact Statement. This started a comment period that ends Tuesday, February 6, 2024.

It is critical for the Bureau to hear from the public! Your voice can strengthen this plan and help us to better protect big game habitat for elk, mule deer, pronghorn, bighorn sheep and a range of other wildlife species. By submitting a comment to the BLM, you are giving wildlife a voice and advocating for a stable and thriving economy rooted in wildlife tourism and outdoor recreation. Don’t miss this chance to influence a decision that safeguards jobs, local businesses, and wildlife. Information and comment link are available on the Big Game Corridor Amendment ePlanning site. See our resources below for more information about writing effective comments and talking points for your comments.

Resources

Talking Points

Use one or more of the talking points below as inspiration for your comments. There is more detailed information in the Big Game Resource Management Plan Talking Points and Background document (thanks to representatives from the conservation, hunting, and angling communities for compiling and sharing this information).

  • The Bureau of Land Management’s draft Big Game Resource Management Plan Amendment (RMPA) takes important steps to protect critical wildlife habitat from oil and gas impacts, but the draft doesn’t go far enough.
  • If the Bureau of Land Management’s preferred alternative isn’t strengthened, it could be decades before existing impacts are addressed, meaning more avoidable losses of habitat will occur and a diminished opportunity to secure the future of healthy wildlife populations in Colorado.
  • Stronger protections from direct and indirect impacts of oil and gas development are needed to support and sustain wildlife populations in Colorado. 
  • Elk, mule deer, pronghorn, and bighorn sheep populations are vital to supporting Colorado communities, economies, and values, and their future is being undermined by habitat fragmentation and loss associated with oil and gas development.
  • Aligning the Bureau of Land Management’s oil and gas program with Colorado standards is highly commendable, but limiting the scope to oil and gas could lead to mounting impacts associated with renewable energy development and recreation will be left unaddressed. 
  • Species like elk, bighorn sheep, mule deer, and pronghorn are more than just iconic symbols of Colorado’s great outdoors; they also serve as barometers for the health of our ecosystems. This amendment doesn’t just impact these species, it has the potential to support a range of wildlife species and uphold the integrity and resilience of Colorado’s lands and waters for future generations to benefit from and enjoy. 
  • High-priority habitat for Colorado’s wildlife is important and should be given more than bare minimum protections.