Why Protect the Dolores Canyons?
Today, the future of the Dolores River Canyon Country is uncertain. Ongoing threats to these public lands include:
Mining Impacts: We believe mining and energy development aren’t appropriate everywhere. The current administration is prioritizing mining and extractive industries on public lands. The speculation of uranium and vanadium in the Dolores landscape will most likely increase as companies seize the opportunity to exploit lands in the Dolores Canyons in a time with less oversight.
Unplanned Recreation: Public lands across Colorado, including the Dolores, are already experiencing steadily increasing visitation and the attendant impacts. A national monument or national conservation area are opportunities 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.
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.
Development Pressure: Colorado has seen rapid growth and increasing development pressures in recent decades. A conservation designation would prohibit large-scale development in the Dolores Canyons, including projects like Xcel Energy’s plan for a hydropower plant in Unaweep Canyon. After significant pushback from the local community, Xcel walked back the project in 2022, however, with this new administration promising to loosen regulations, it could re-emerge.
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.