Looking for common ground on forest: GMUG poring through thousands of draft plan comments
The Grand Mesa, Uncompahgre and Gunnison National Forests stretch across nine counties, with uses ranging from recreation, to logging, to livestock grazing, to management of vital wildlife habitat.
Start any conversation about how such a sprawling landscape of multiple uses should be managed in future years, and it's bound to be a spirited discussion. Case in point: The U.S. Forest Service's work to revise its GMUG land management plan.
HCCA Thanks You for Helping the Future GMUG National Forest
One of the highlights of our public lands advocacy in 2021 was leading local and regional engagement in the GMUG National Forest Plan revision process. After a long wait, the GMUG’s Draft Forest Plan and Draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) were released for public review and comment in August.
Comments Needed on GMUG Draft Forest Plan by November 12
There’s one month left to submit comments on the Draft GMUG Forest Plan and Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS). High Country Conservation Advocates (HCCA) is asking all of our members and supporters to comment today to help shape the future of our incredible National Forest lands.
GMUG draft revision reexamines Wild and Scenic eligibility
The GMUG forest plan revision process is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to influence how the USFS manages a huge chunk of Colorado’s public lands. The GMUG has in it 36,000 miles of rivers and streams, some of which wind through the Western Slope’s most remote landscapes. Yet the Forest Service is considering less than 4% of those miles as eligible for protection under the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act.
Community Action Needed! Attend Tuesday’s Virtual Gunnison Ranger District Open House
On Tuesday, September 28, from 5:00 to 7:00 pm, the Forest Service’s Gunnison Ranger District will host a virtual open house to discuss the GMUG’s draft forest plan and its alternatives. High Country Conservation Advocates (HCCA) is asking all of our members and supporters who care about the future of the Gunnison National Forest to attend and speak up on behalf of wilderness, wildlife, and sustainable recreation.
Attention Boaters, Anglers, and Water Rats: Wild & Scenic River Comments Needed
During the forest planning process, the public has the opportunity to weigh in on the unique qualities of our local creeks and rivers and to comment on whether certain segments are eligible for inclusion in the National Wild & Scenic Rivers System.
Sampling Outstanding Waters
Our work takes us to beautiful places! Fall means that our staff get to sneak outside for stewardship projects and to collect data demonstrating that special protections are warranted for some of our favorite ecosystems. Protecting our streams requires that we collect data to demonstrate that these streams meet Colorado’s highest designation for water quality protections.
Draft forest plan flops among conservationists
Conservation advocates this week began digesting the more than 1,300 pages of documents that make up the U.S. Forest Service draft plan for much of the Western Slope. The plan includes detailed environmental impact analyses and reams of source materials. But even a cursory look yielded a warning sign for many groups: a dramatic increase in the amount of land designated as “suitable timber” for logging.
Draft forest plan for GMUG soliciting public comment
The long awaited draft revision plan for the Grand Mesa, Uncompaghre and Gunnison (GMUG) National Forest was released last week on August 13 and the public will have 90 days to make comments on the proposal. The plan is the major guiding document on how things like recreation, logging and wildlife are managed on the nearby national forests.
KBUT: Matt Reed says new GMUG Forest plan needs public input.
The Grand Mesa, Uncompahgre and Gunnison national forest totals just short of 3 million acres across Colorado’s Western Slope. Once certified the new Forest Plan, which is open for public comment thru Nov. 12, will guide the GMUG decision for decades. Matt Reed wants the public to know how they can get involved, and talks about areas where he thinks the plan needs improvement.
Community Action Needed! Draft GMUG Forest Plan Released for Comment
On August 13, 2021 the U.S. Forest Service released its draft revised forest plan and draft environmental impact statement (DEIS) for the Grand Mesa, Uncompahgre, and Gunnison (GMUG) National Forest. This initiated a 90-day comment period that will conclude on November 11, 2021. Forest Plans provide a general framework to guide the management of a national forest regarding its resources, goods and services.
Groups Urge More Wilderness in GMUG National Forests' Draft Plan
The U.S. Forest Service has released its draft management plan for the Grand Mesa, Uncompahgre and Gunnison national forests. The plan includes a significant increase in the amount of land that would be available for logging, and groups that advocate for public lands are raising concerns that it recommends only 34,000 acres of new wilderness across the forest.
GMUG releases draft forest plan for public review
The U.S. Forest Service has released its draft revised plan for managing the Grand Mesa, Uncompahgre and Gunnison National Forests, an action likely to be followed by intensified debate over how things such as logging, recreation and wildlife habitat should be managed on those forests in coming years.
The GMUG Draft Revised Forest Plan is Here!
At long last, the Grand Mesa, Uncompahgre and Gunnison (GMUG) National Forest published its draft revised forest plan and draft environmental impact statement (DEIS) today. This initiates a 90-day comment period that will conclude on November 11th, 2021. This is a critical opportunity for YOU to submit comments to the Forest Service…
Upcoming GMUG Webinars & Virtual Open Houses
The GMUG national forest is excited to host a virtual webinar series to provide an introduction to the Draft Forest Plan. We will give an overview of the planning process and the plan alternatives on Tuesday August 17th and delve deeper into key issues identified by the public on Thursday August 19th. Your questions and feedback are welcome. Additionally, dates have been selected for virtual open houses in September.
A ‘generational’ opportunity
The Grand Mesa, Uncompahgre and Gunnison (GMUG) National Forest has a dubious distinction: they are managed under one of the oldest forest plans in the country, dating back to 1983. That means the document guiding decisions on 1.2 million acres of public lands in Gunnison County ignores the changing climate, the dominant uses of recreation and Colorado’s shift away from extractive industries.
Upcoming GMUG's Draft Forest Plan and Draft Environmental Impact Statement
Love trees and forests? Then we encourage you to participate in the upcoming 90-day comment period for the GMUG's Draft Forest Plan and Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS). The Forest Service will publish the draft revised forest plan and draft environmental impact statement (DEIS) on Friday August 13th, 2021. This will initiate a formal 90-day comment period that will conclude on November 11th, 2021.
30 x 30 and GMUG - What’s the Connection? What are the Possibilities?
The Grand Mesa, Uncompahgre, and Gunnison National Forest (GMUG) is revising its forest plan, with a Draft Plan/Draft Environmental Impact Statement scheduled to be released this year. There is a once-in-a-generation opportunity on the 3.16-million acre GMUG to proactively tackle biodiversity loss, climate change, equitable access, and other issues so important to Coloradans.