Today, the future of the Dolores River Canyon Country is uncertain. Ongoing threats to these public lands include:

1. Mining Impacts: We believe mining and energy development isn’t appropriate everywhere. This proposal strikes a balance between protecting the most biodiverse and culturally-rich public lands, while leaving the vast majority areas with significant mining interest open to exploration.

2. Unplanned Recreation: Public lands across Colorado, including the Dolores, are already experiencing steadily increasing visitation and the attendant impacts. A national monument is an opportunity to stay a step ahead of the crowds. It would focus management attention on this incredible place, invite local input into future land use, leverage new resources to develop sustainable recreation infrastructure, and minimize damage to the very resources that attract people to these public lands in the first place.

3. Climate Change: The Dolores River is a headwater tributary of the Colorado River. Climate change and a multi-decade drought have already caused these important water resources to reach perilously low levels. Conservation will help secure the health and resiliency of these public lands and waters with downstream benefits to some 40 million Americans who rely on water from the Colorado River.

4. Development Pressure: Colorado has seen rapid growth and increasing development pressures in recent decades. A national monument would prohibit large-scale development in the Dolores Canyons, including projects like Xcel’s plan for a hydropower plant in Unaweep Canyon. After significant pushback from the local community, Xcel walked back the project in 2022.

5. Habitat Fragmentation: This is Colorado’s largest, most-biodiverse unprotected landscape, home to several iconic game species. Left unprotected, pipelines, powerlines, industrial installations, and unauthorized roads have the potential to fragment this remarkably intact landscape and disrupt local wildlife populations.