Development Principles for Routt County Public Lands

Keep Routt Wild is proud to join other groups and individuals in supporting the Development Principles for Routt County Lands, documented below. This should be applied not only to the Mad Rabbit Trail Proposal, but all development on Routt County public lands.

With increased pressure on wildlife and wildlife habitat, protection of wildlife habitat and wild places must be valued the same or more than new recreational development on public lands.  Undeveloped wild lands in particular need to be protected from diminishment and fragmentation that degrade them, and set aside for their inherent value to fish, wildlife and people.  To protect the public lands resource that all Routt County residents value, appreciate and enjoy, we, the undersigned, believe that any new development on public lands in the county should meet all the following principles:

• Protect existing fish, wildlife and plant habitat.

• Protect wildlife from harassment and dislocation from their natural, preferred locations, including pushing them on to private agricultural lands where they can cause additional depredation and damage.

• Protect aquatic resources, including avoiding any significant erosion into Routt County streams, rivers, and wetlands.

• Be prioritized to occur in areas where approved development already has occurred and currently exists.

• Be accompanied by an integrated maintenance and enforcement plan, including procuring the necessary funding, personnel and commitment to implement that plan.

• Be limited in scope to the minimum footprint necessary to achieve the purpose of the project.

• Be viewed and assessed in the context of the total cumulative impacts of all previous development and use in potentially affected areas.

Supporters: