Rep. Hurd puts the interests of big business and the elite Republican DC establishment above those of his constituents by his recent actions.
Rep. Hurd just introduced the Productive Public Lands Act. This bill reopens thousands of acres of federal public lands across Colorado to energy development and reduces protections for wildlife.
Hurd cosponsored HR 521 which limits presidential power to establish national monuments and HR 1206 which reduces the consideration given to conservation relative to use of Bureau of Land Management land.
The Protective Public Lands Act reverses years of work by Colorado BLM staff who worked with local governments, the public, businesses, and tribal nations to craft resource management plans. It circumvents all the public process and public input and instead dictates the outcomes being pushed from Washington, DC. This bill would reverse decisions made in October about management of Gunnison Sage Grouse habitat and would undo a plan for increased conservation measures for big game habitat and migration corridors.
As resident of Durango for 30 years, I highly prize wildlife and public lands dedicated to preserve their health and survival. Expanded oil and gas extraction, the infrastructure it requires, and the pollution it produces are not in the best interests of any of Hurd’s constituents. U.S. energy needs must be addressed creatively but with appropriate concern for environmental impacts and with strong emphasis on renewable energy.
Public lands are part of our valued lifestyle. We should not hand them over for others' profit. They belong to us, our children and grandchildren.
Eugenia Miller
Durango