Vermillion Basin
Northwest Colorado's Natural Treasure At Risk
The wild and rugged Vermillion Basin proposed wilderness, in far Northwestern Colorado’s Little Snake Resource Area is at great risk from oil and gas development.
Events
Renewal!
Thursday April 30th
Center of Craig 7-9 p.m.
Admission is free.
CEC 2009 Film Festival concludes with the showing of Renewal feature-length documentary to capture the breadth and vitality of America’s religious-environmental movement. In communities across America, people are rolling up their sleeves in practical and far-reaching ways. Offering a profound message of hope, Renewal shows people driven by their spiritual and religious convictions, being called to re-examine what it means to be human and how we live on this planet. Friends of Northwest Colorado will be selling popcorn and soda pop with proceeds going towards their scholarship fund.
Friends of Northwest Colorado BBQ
Saturday May 2nd
Maybell Park, Maybell Colorado
12 noon-4pm
Join us for a rollicking goodtime at a family-style western BBQ. For event details contact us.
Friends of Northwest Colorado Monthly Meeting
Thursday May 7th
Craig Boys and Girls Club
6:30 p.m
On the agenda - OHV Monitoring and River Trip planning. Plus the usual updates on issues that affect us. Please join us! And bring one of your Friends to Friends.
OHV Monitoring Research Work Days
May 9th and May 16
Meet in Craig in the morning to travel to Sand Wash via car pool.
All Day
Volunteers needed to assist with field work in Sand Wash Basin. This a great day out working on cutting edge research. More details coming soon. We would appreciate RSVPs to help in planning. Contact Us for additional info and to RSVP.
For more information about these or any other CEC programs please Contact Us!
Memorial Day Weekend Brown’s Park Stewardship
Friday, May 22, 2009 - Monday, May 25, 2009
Moffat County Colorado
Tracking Butch and Sundance by Steve Bonowski
Notorious late 19th century outlaws, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, had a strong Colorado connection, beginning with the location of their first "bank job" in Telluride. Later, when the "heat" from the law got too hot, they would sometimes hang out for a while in remote and beautiful Browns Park, located in far northwest Colorado where the Green River enters our state.
Here is your chance to visit this historic area. The Colorado Mountain Club Conservation Department is sponsoring a long weekend in Browns Park over the upcoming Memorial Day weekend. The group will drive up on Friday for a car camp in the general area. We'll spend some time on Saturday with the BLM doing some light trail work and other maintenance at a Native American rock art interpretive site near Irish Canyon. We'll hike on Saturday afternoon, Sunday, and Monday morning before returning home. The area seldom has visitors so we may have some of the trails all to ourselves. We may see other native art sites, old homesteads, and visit the overlook into the 77,000 acre proposed Vermillion Basin wilderness area.
Register with Colorado Mountain Club or our Northwest Colorado partners, Colorado Environmental Coalition, after May 1. Group size limit is 9-10, including the leader. This trip fills fast. Please contact us for additional information!
2009 Rebel with a Cause Gala
Thursday, May 28, 2009, 5:30-8:30pm
Donald R. Seawell Grand Ballroom,
Denver Center for the Performing Arts
1103 13th St, Denver
Colorado Environmental Coalition invites you to join us to honor Van Jones, founding president of Green For All and a senior fellow with the Center for American Progress, as the recipient of the 2009 Rebel with a Cause Award. Van Jones is the author of the new book The Green Collar Economy, which is endorsed by Al Gore and other conservation heroes. Van is a tireless advocate, committed to creating "green pathways out of poverty" and greatly expanding the coalition to fight global warming.
For more information about these CEC programs Contact US!
Air Quality Assessment Receives Attention!
Over 18,000 comments...
expressing concern over the BLM air quality assessment were generated during the public comment period!
Clean air and water are important to the people of Colorado. The Bureau of Land Management in October released a report predicting how proposed development of public lands in Routt and Moffat counties could affect air and water in the region.
To read the complete report visit:
Healthy Air and Water
Drilling and Air Pollution in Little Snake and Northwest Colorado
Air quality is one of the most important issues facing the lands and residents of areas undergoing oil and gas development. Because drilling is a major contributor to pollution problems, solid scientific analysis and strong air quality protections are critical for sustainable oil and gas management. Read on...
Oil and Gas Production: Clouding Western Skies
Air Pollution Causes Growing Health and Environmental Impacts in the West
Hazardous air pollutants: Oil and gas drilling operations can release a number of hazardous
pollutants, including hydrogen sulfide, benzene, toluene, formaldehyde, and diesel exhaust.
Exposure is known to lead to short-term illnesses, cancer, or even death. For example, benzene and
formaldehyde are both known to cause cancer, and diesel exhaust contains a number of compounds
known to cause cancer. Emissions can come from oil and gas itself, chemical additives used in
drilling, or fuel combustion. Despite the health risks, oil and gas exploration and production
operations are exempt from two key provisions of the Clean Air Act’s National Emissions Standards
for Hazardous Air Pollutants, designed to protect public health. Read on...
Drilling Down: Protecting
Communities from
Health and Environmental Effects
of Oil and Gas Production
The oil and gas industry in the United States has expanded rapidly during
the last decade, particularly in the Rocky Mountain region. But oil and
gas production releases pollution that can have serious impacts on people’s
health and the surrounding air, water, and land. Although these operations
are frequently located near homes, schools, and other community resources,
the oil and gas industry enjoys numerous exemptions from provisions
of federal laws intended to protect human health and the environment. Read on...
Assessing Costs Associated with Impacts to Air Quality
Substantial economic costs are likely to occur if air quality in the areas surrounding BLM lands continues to deteriorate as the result of proposed actions and developments such as increased oil and gas exploration and production. There are tools readily available to assist the BLM in conducting a thorough analysis of the
health-related costs of increased ozone exposures for citizens living near and visitors to BLM lands, so that
these costs can be given due consideration in land management decisions.
the risks. Read on...
Vermillion Habitat
BLM wilderness areas comprise many key links in these landscape connections between our peaks and valleys, as well as along the many river valleys to neighboring states and ecoregions.
Threatened and Endangered Species
Endangered and threatened species such as the peregrine falcon and the bald eagle find nesting areas in the canyons of western Colorado. The rich habitat along many perennial streams and rivers provide excellent feeding grounds for these raptors. Many imperiled species, such as the canyon tree frog, kit fox, kachina daisy, sage grouse, and the pikeminnow also depend on these areas for their survival.
Big Game
Big game such as elk and deer, as well as predators like black bear and mountain lion, find these mid-elevation lands necessary for winter range and feeding. These wilderness areas also include: critical winter range for our big game herds when they descend from the protected high country; slickrock canyons that are never snowbound, providing accessibility to recreationists year-round; and protection for the intermittent streams and springs upon which our desert bighorns and other wildlife depend.