BlueRibbon Coalition Action Alert!
Calls Are Needed To Stop Closures Proposed By Wilderness Extremists

Price, UT (9/9/2009) - This is a HIGH PRORITY update.

SITUATION:
Flush with funding from wealthy donors and foundations in Washington D.C., a group called the Wilderness Workshop is pushing for 600,000 acres of new Wilderness in Colorado by next year.

HOW THIS WILL AFFECT YOU:
Mountain bike, snowmobile and OHV users will lose world-class trails and areas. This proposal would make over 75% of the Four Mile, Clear Fork, Spruce Mountain, Basalt Mountain, Red Tables, Hagerman Pass, Huntsman's Ridge and Thompson Creek areas Wilderness.

CONGRESSIONAL CONFIRMATION:
This Hidden Gems proposal appears to be much more than the typical "wish list" from the Wilderness activists. BRC confirmed with the Natural Resource staff for Representative Jared Polis that, although there is no bill at this time, Representative Polis is holding meetings and talking to stakeholders. The goal is to have draft legislation prepared soon.

Local staff for Representative Salazar, whose district also includes lands in the Hidden Gems proposal, said that at this time they had no immediate plans to sponsor or co-sponsor the Hidden Gems proposal.

Congressman Salazar is concentrating on his own Wilderness bill, called the ''San Juan Mountains Wilderness Act." This legislation includes 63,475 acres on the Grand Mesa, Uncompahgre, Gunnison and San Juan National Forests, as well as lands managed by the San Juan Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Resource Area.

WHAT YOU NEED TO DO:
Please call your Congressman TODAY. We've provided the phone numbers and some suggestions on what to say below.

EXTRA CREDIT:
Learn what this and a Wilderness bill in Montana may have in common. Read Big Foundation Dollars Behind "Local" Wilderness Proposals in Colorado and Montana.

Please pass this on to friends and family. And as always, if you have any questions or comments, we want to hear from you.

Brian Hawthorne
Public Lands Policy Director
BlueRibbon Coalition
208-237-1008 ext 102

PS. If you are looking for a bit of motivation to take action on this, please take a minute and read a special message from Sean Martin:

HIDDEN GEMS ACTION ALERT INSTRUCTIONS:

Step 1. Type in your zip code here to find contact info for your congressman.

Step 2. Call the number of the office located nearest to you. BE POLITE

Tell the staff member who answers your call:

I strongly OPPOSE the Hidden Gems Wilderness Proposal that Congressman Polis is considering sponsoring (make sure the staff is clear on your opposition).

There is no serious threat to these lands. If there were, then recreation-friendly alternatives, such as a National Recreation Area, would be a better idea than Wilderness, which locks out most recreation.

Please tell the Congressman that I want him to protect FOR the public, not FROM the public.

Step 3. Forward this alert to your friends and family.

IMPORTANT NOTE: If you live in Delta, Eagle, Garfield, Gunnison, Mesa,

Pitkin or Summit County, please also call your county commissioners. (Contact information here)

Ric Foster
BlueRibbon Coalition