the San Luis Valley Ecosystem council

CONTENTS

How has SLVEC Protected Your Public Lands this 2021? 

~ Annual Updates ~

SLVEC has been busy working on several critical campaigns this year. Watch the video above or visit our blog page for more information on the following projects: 

1. Granting Long-term Protection to Stretches of the Rio Grande in Costilla and Conejos Counties

2. Supporting Initiatives that Increase the Quantity and Quality of Wildlife Corridors in Saguache County 

3. Pushing for Increased Wilderness Designation in Southern  Colorado 

4. Continuing to Fight Against the Longstanding Proposal to Build a Village on top of Wolf Creek Pass- The Court Battles Continue.

Uniting with Conservation Groups to Protect Colorado's Vulnerable Species

~SLVEC Files Lawsuit Against Rio Grande National Forest's Land Management Plan~

From the official Press Release:

"Denver, Colo. (November 8, 2021) – Today, Defenders of Wildlife, The Wilderness Society, the San LuisValley Ecosystem Council, San Juan Citizens Alliance, WildEarth Guardians and the Western Environmental Law Center filed two lawsuits against the United States Forest Service over its newly revised land management plan for the Rio Grande National Forest. Over the past six years, conservation groups provided science-based recommendations and concrete solutions for protecting species and their diverse habitats in the Forest.  But in the face of these needed steps, the Forest Service’s plan slashes protections for the threatened Canada lynx and the endangered Uncompahgre fritillary butterfly in violation of the Endangered Species Act, National Environmental Policy Act and the Forest Service’s own regulations..."

"The lawsuit... challenges the forest plan’s failure to adequately protect habitat for species including the Uncompahgre fritillary butterfly, or to regulate recreational uses appropriately. The Rio Grande National Forest is also home to five of the 11 colonies of critically endangered Uncompahgre fritillary butterfly. The species can only be found fluttering above 12,000 feet and in just a small area of Colorado. Despite identifying threats to the species, including trampling by humans and livestock and climate change, the Rio Grande’s revised forest plan fails to do anything specific to protect this species,  much less contribute to its recovery. In addition, the plan missed a key opportunity to connect important habitat areas so species can move from summer to winter habitat, and to assure that recreation avoids key habitat areas. Both of these factors are crucial to ecological and resource protection."

Combatting Climate Change in the Arid West One Dam at a Time

~ Beavers to the Rescue ~

There is profound power in two orange, iron incisors that never stop growing.  Beaver teeth are as strong as steel, allowing them to chop down entire trees, haul around piles of debris, and build durable dams capable of completely transforming an environment. Beavers are known as ecosystem engineers and keystone species because of the numerous and beneficial services they offer to enhance ecology, hydrology, and biodiversity in a region. Additionally, contemporary data is now suggesting that beavers play a critical role in combating drought, wildfires, wetland degradation, and other symptoms of climate change. 

Visit our blog to learn more about this incredible creature's role in the future health of our planet!

  Colorado Environmental Groups Collaborate

~SLVEC Hosts Southern Rockies Conservation Alliance Retreat~

From Christine Canaly, SLVEC Director

Noting that we were gathering on the ancestral lands of the Ute, Jicarilla Apache, and Cheyenne; and “with thanks to their past and continued stewardship of these lands, that we are able to enjoy them today”, the Southern Rockies Conservation Alliance (SRCA) began its Retreat on a windy, early October morning. The Sangre de Cristo’s were towering above us, as the setting was Orient Land Trust’s (OLT) Everson Ranch. The San Luis Valley Ecosystem Council (SLVEC) hosted this fall retreat to gather environmental/conservation organizations throughout Colorado.

Persons/Groups participating were SRCA chairs Juli Slivka/Wilderness Workshop and Jim Ramey/The Wilderness Society; Beau Kiklis, Conservation Colorado;  Ben Katz, Western Slope Conservation Center; Graham Ward, Colorado Wild Public Lands; Erik Molvar, Western Watersheds Project; Matt Sandler, Rocky Mountain Wild; Scott Braden, Colorado Wildlands Project; Jimbo Buickerood, San Juan Citizens Alliance; Jared Bynum, Conservation Colorado; Joe Wood, Wilderness Workshop; Beatriz Soto, Protegete Conservation Colorado;  Tanya Henderson, Western Slope Conservation Center; Kendall Chastain, Colorado Mountain Club; Roz McClellan, Rocky Mountain Recreation Initiative; Nathan Goodman, Conservation Colorado; Ean Tafoya, Green Latinos; and Mark Pearson, San Juan Citizens Alliance.

The group proceeded with policy discussions and updates from their locale and how these regions from around the southern rockies fit into state conservation policy and President Biden’s national conservation agenda.  According to polls, 80% of Coloradans support the 30 x 30 resolution, conserving US lands and water by 2030.

Environmental Justice (EJ) was a major nexus for the groups brain storming, to prioritize and integrate human understanding and how shared values of needing the solace in nature can be managed equitably on the public landscape.... 

Want to Support SLVEC?

Visit our donation page to see all the ways that you can  support our mission of protecting and restoring the biological diversity, ecosystems, and natural resources in the Upper Rio Grande Basin. 

For the children of today and tomorrow, San Luis Valley Ecosystem Council is committed to protecting the 3.1 million acres of public lands that surround the Valley.