With the passage of Proposition 114 last year, we will have additional wolves placed on the ground in Colorado. The process to add the already naturally migrating wildlife to the habitat will be the fastest noted in the history of the United States. It is important that all citizens take the time to weigh in on the process.
To ensure that all aspects of the addition of a number of apex predators is as beneficial as ballot box biology can be, CPW has created a number of advisory entities, including a technical working group, a stakeholder advisory group, and they’ve enlisted the Keystone Policy Center to oversee the process.
Read on to learn more about the public input meetings and process, and be sure to file your comments online here – https://www.wolfengagementco.org/summer-2021-public-events/survey_tools/general-comment-form .
Colorado Parks and Wildlife, Keystone Policy Center Launch Public Engagement Website, Announce Slate of Public Listening Sessions
DENVER – Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) and the Keystone Policy Center announced the dates, times, and locations of in-person, open house public listening sessions that will give Coloradans opportunities to engage and provide substantive input and feedback into the gray wolf restoration and management planning process. CPW and Keystone also announced today the launch of a new public engagement website, which houses a general comment form and will house a more detailed, Summer 2021 online comment form this summer.
“The primary purpose of these open houses and the public engagement website is to provide Coloradans with multiple opportunities to share their suggestions and concerns with the Division: This process will inform the wolf restoration and management planning process,” said Julie Shapiro, director of the Natural Resources Program for Keystone Policy Center. “The specific details and decisions about gray wolf reintroduction will be made by Colorado Parks and Wildlife and the Parks and Wildlife Commission after robust public, stakeholder, and technical expert involvement. We strongly encourage all Coloradans to offer their contribution to the restoration and management planning process.”
The schedule of upcoming open house listening sessions are as follows. All meetings are scheduled to be held from 5:00 – 8:00 p.m.*
July 12
Steamboat Springs Community Center
1605 Lincoln Ave
Steamboat Springs, CO
July 13
CMC’s Morgridge Commons
815 Cooper Ave, 2nd Floor Glenwood Springs, CO
July 19
Fort Lewis College, Student Union Ballroom, 1000 Rim Drive
Durango, CO
July 21
Montrose Field House
25 Colorado Ave
Montrose, CO
July 22
Western Colorado University University Center Ballroom
Gunnison, CO
July 26
Moffat County High School
900 Finley Ln
Craig, CO
July 28
Mesa County Fairgrounds, Community Building
2785 US HWY 50
Grand Junction, CO
August 2
Avalon Ballroom
6185 Arapahoe Rd
Boulder, CO
*6-9 pm due to scheduling
August 3
Alamosa Co Ice Rink
2242 Old Sanford Rd
Alamosa, CO
August 4
Cottonwood Center for the Arts
427 E Colorado Ave
Colorado Springs, CO
August 5
Las Animas County Fairgrounds
2000 N. Linden Ave.
Trinidad, CO 81082
August 10
Colorado Parks and Wildlife Denver Office
6060 Broadway, Denver, CO
August 11
CSU Lory Student Center, Ballroom
1101 Center Ave Mall
Fort Collins, CO
August 12
Northeastern Junior College – Hays Center Ballroom
100 College Ave
Sterling, CO
In addition to public listening sessions, CPW and Keystone launched a website where Coloradans will be able to provide comments via a detailed online comment form in July and August; that online comment form will ask the same questions and provide the same background information as the in-person open houses. The new website is wolfengagementco.org. It will also provide dates, locations, and details about public meetings as well as information about the Stakeholder Advisory Group and Technical Working Group, which are both providing expertise and practical feedback for the restoration and management planning process. Additionally, the website allows visitors to leave a general comment about the reintroduction process at any time during the planning process. All comments submitted to the website will require a name, email address, and state/county of residence.
CPW and Keystone will conduct a total of 14 in-person open house public listening sessions in regions throughout the state. Members of the public are encouraged to attend the open house in the region in which they reside; all open houses will follow the same format and cover the same content. Pre-registration at wolfengagementco.org is encouraged and appreciated, but not required.
Those attending the open houses will be able to visit stations at their own pace to provide input on wolf planning topics. Attendees will also be able to provide written feedback through a detailed online comment form either during the open house or at a later time. Paper forms will also be available for use during the open house.
The open house public listening sessions are a component of the more than 40 meetings being conducted in July and August. In addition to the open houses, CPW and Keystone will convene approximately 17 invitational geographic-based focus groups in Western Colorado, approximately 10 invitational interest-based focus groups, as well as Tribal consultation meetings.
About the Wolf Restoration and Management Plan
Proposition 114, a ballot initiative directing the Colorado Parks and Wildlife Commission to develop a plan to introduce gray wolves onto the Western Slope of Colorado, passed on November 3, 2020. Proposition 114 directs the Colorado Parks and Wildlife Commission to develop a plan to reintroduce and manage gray wolves in Colorado no later than December 31, 2023, on designated lands west of the Continental Divide; hold statewide hearings about scientific, economic, and social considerations; periodically obtain public input to update the plan; and use state funds to assist livestock owners in preventing conflicts with gray wolves and pay fair compensation for livestock losses.
About Keystone Policy Center
Keystone Policy Center brings together crucial teams of stakeholders who have diverse individual perspectives but recognize a common need to address urgent issues with lasting solutions. For more than 40 years, Keystone has helped leaders move beyond fixed positions toward collaborative, action-oriented approaches to problem-solving. In this age of polarized debate on nearly every major topic in public policy, Keystone offers a refreshing yet proven blueprint for progress.
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Mia Anstine is an outdoor writer, licensed outfitter, hunting guide, life coach, keynote speaker, and a range safety officer, firearms instructor, and archery instructor. She is the founder of MAC Outdoors and Host of the MAC Outdoors Podcast.
Mia Anstine strives to encourage others to outdoors, hunt, fish, shoot, and survive life with others in a positive way.
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