From sweeping sagebrush basins to rainbow-colored badlands, the Little Snake Resource Area’s public lands boast some of Colorado's most rugged and wild landscapes; world-class elk, mule deer, and pronghorn hunting; ancient petroglyph-filled canyons; and excellent hiking and whitewater rafting.

Alarmingly, the Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) recently released draft Resource Management Plan (RMP) for the area’s federal lands would relegate most of this area to high impact uses such as oil and gas development, road building, and off-road vehicle use.  In fact,  -- the BLM’s preferred alternative opens 93% of the area to oil and gas development, including the spectacular Vermillion Basin! Because the plan will determine how BLM lands in nNorthwest Colorado will be managed for the next 15-20 years, it is critical that we act now to ensure our precious wildlands receive appropriate protection.

Still-pristine lands with exceptional wilderness qualities - such as Vermillion Basin, Cold Spring Mountain, and the region's five other proposed wilderness areas - should be managed to protect the solitude, wildlife habitat and cultural resources they offer. Also in need of protection is the Little Snake's outstanding greater sage-grouse habitat, considered the best left in Colorado, to preserve this rapidly declining species. While Management Alternative D in the draft plan (considered the "conservation alternative") would provide some protection for proposed wilderness lands and key habitats by designating Areas of Critical Environmental Concern, Special Recreation Management Areas, and Wild and Scenic river stretches, the BLM's preferred management alternative (Alternative C) leaves most of these special places open to energy development and degradation by off-road vehicles.

The damaging effects of the BLM’s proposed plan to the wide-open landscapes and rural western lifestyle of the region would be widespread and long-term. That's why we need your help today -- take action and convince the BLM to adopt a responsible, sustainable plan that will protect wildlife and special places like the Vermillion Basin proposed wilderness.

For more information, go to SaveVermillion.org.