Posted: 03.12.10 08:47 AM
H.R. 4289, sponsored by Representative Diane DeGette (D-01), would designate 850,000 acres of additional land in Colorado as Wilderness Area. In light of the fact that all mechanized means of transportation, including bicycles and game carts, are prohibited in Wilderness, this would dramatically curtail hunter access to these vast areas. In addition, Wilderness designation ends virtually all active wildlife and habitat management methods employed by state and federal biologists on all other lands. This could not come at a worse time for Colorado with the forest devastation being caused by the pine beetle. Wildlife officials must retain all means necessary to combat invasive species and actively manage for wildlife and forest health.