Ahead of a speaking event at Sopris Park on Monday, July 1, U.S. Secretary of Interior Deb Haaland joined Senator Michael Bennet and a few local Thompson Divide advocates, including locally elected officials, for a short hike on the Lorax Trail off of Thompson Creek Road.
Later, at the Gazebo, the secretary and senator sat alongside local officials — Carbondale Mayor Pro Tem Erica Sparhawk, Pitkin County Commissioner Greg Poschman and Gunnison County Commissioner Jonathan Houck — Colorado Department of Natural Resources Director Dan Gibbs, newly appointed Rocky Mountain Regional Forester Troy Heithecker and Carbondale rancher Bill Fales.
“There are far too many people to thank for all of the work that has gotten us to this point, but I want to thank loud Senator Bennet for his tireless dedication and perseverance to help us achieve this protection,” Fales stated. “And now that we have the 20 year withdrawal, we’re also in debt to Secretary Haaland and the Biden administration. We should thank them here today,” he said as the crowd drowned out his closing words with applause. “I hope you heard that last line,” he continued, “that we need to thank them again on Nov. 5.”
Sparhawk spoke to all of the work that not only elected officials have done, but even more so the community advocates and organizations (i.e. the Thompson Divide Coalition and Wilderness Workshop) to secure a 20 year protection. She closed by quoting the late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg, “Real change, enduring change, happens one step at a time.”
“To Bill Fales, thank you so much for being the heartbeat of this entire endeavor,” stated Senator Bennet. “He claimed that we rolled him out just because he has dirt under his fingernails … Whether he’s in the nation’s capital or whether he’s here, he does. But that’s not really the reason why. The reason is that there isn’t anybody, in my mind, who has represented the coalition better than Bill has. He wouldn’t say that, but that’s what I think.”
The senator added that it’s going to take coalitions like the Thompson Divide Coalition to protect other public lands across the country.
Secretary Haaland commended Doug Vilsack, the Colorado director of the Bureau of Land Management, and his department. “This is a team that is awesome, amazing and recognizes the value of community-led conservation.” She stressed the amount of work and process that goes into moving such a protection forward. She added that the 20 year reprieve should help provide conservation advocates and lawmakers the space to work toward permanent protection.
“We have a shared obligation to future generations and, together, we can build a future in which we honor nature, restore balance to our lands and waters and value every living creature on this planet,” the secretary concluded.
