Background

The Rocky Mountain National Park and Dominguez Canyons wilderness proposals are one major step closer to becoming reality! Both proposals, as part of the Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2009, were passed by the Senate by a vote of 73-21 on January 15th, 2009.

These proposals represent years - even decades - of dedicated support from elected officials, local activists and citizens across the state. Achieving wilderness protection for these invaluable gems of Colorado would be an incredible and lasting victory!

The Bill will be taken up by the House of Representatives after they return from the President's Day recess on February 23.

Please act now.

Please ask your House Representative to pass the Omnibus Public Lands Management Act (S.22) with no amendments and help permanently protect these Colorado icons!

If you also live within Representative John Salazar’s district, please also extend special thanks for his tireless work on the Dominguez Canyons wilderness proposal.

For addtional background information go to the Campaign for America's Wilderness at http://www.leaveitwild.org/news/daily_clips/1509  
 

Sample Letter

Please add your own personal comments, experiences, or reflections to the suggested text below -- it will make your letter much more effective!

Dear [Representative]
Re: Support Omnibus Lands Bill

Included in the Omnibus Public Lands Management Act of 2009 are the Dominguez-Escalante National Conservation Area and Dominguez Canyon Wilderness Act and the Rocky Mountain National Park Wilderness Act.

Dominguez-Escalante National Conservation Area and Dominguez Canyon Wilderness Act will create a 211,000-acre National Conservation Area (NCA). Within the NCA will be the 66,000-acre Dominguez Canyons Wilderness Area.  The NCA will provide the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) with the opportunity to appropriately manage this land for a variety of multiple use trail systems.  Recreational users will be able to enter the NCA and engage in activities from off-road vehicle use to hiking, from mountain biking to horseback riding.

The Dominguez Canyons Wilderness will be forever protected for hiking, hunting horseback riding and other forms of quiet recreation.

The Rocky Mountain National Park Wilderness Act will permanently protect the backcountry of Rocky Mountain National Park as wilderness.  To the average park visitor, there will be no noticeable change in how the park is run, because the National Park Service manages the backcountry of the park as if it were wilderness. The lands involved have been recommended for wilderness for decades, so this designation is the final step in the wilderness designation process and will ensure they remain as they are today for future generations.

Please pass, without amendment, the Omnibus Public Lands Management Act of 2009, and help protect these invaluable landscapes!

Sincerely,

Your Name
You Address