9377 ‎(2)‎

• UCREFRP Catalog Number: 9377
• Author: Colorado Water Workshop.
• Title: 16th Annual Colorado Water Workshop.
• USFW Year: 1991.
• USFW - Doc Type: Western State College.
• Copyright Material: NO

Colorado Wetland Policy Options Assessment
Presentation to the Colorado Water Workshop
Western State College
July 23, 1991
Page 4
development of private property, the allocation and development
of water resources, and the way we protect important economic,
ecological, recreational, and other opportunities.
Since wetlands are important to the people of Colorado, and
because an increasing number of the decisions which affect our
future are now being made in Washington DC, many have asked
whether Colorado should educate and assert itself into the
wetlands protection controversy to assure that our local or
regional distinctions and priorities are recognized and
protected. Given the substantial federal presence and the limits
on state and local government resources, however, it is not clear
whether there is an appropriate and affordable role for Colorado
to play in the protection and development of wetland resources.
Colorado is under pressure to develop a "state conservation
program."
As with many other federal programs (e.g., Drug Free
Workplace, Equal Opportunity Employment), there is already
evidence that wetland protection plans may become prerequisites
for states to qualify for certain-federal assistance programs.
It now appears that there are several sources of federal money
which could soon become unavailable if Colorado doesn't adopt a
state conservation plan for wetlands. The following examples are
illustrative of what may become widespread.
Under provisions of the federal Land and Water Conservation
Fund Act of 1965, states which secured approval of a "Statewide
Comprehensive Outdoor Recreation Plan" (SCORP) from the National
Park Service became eligible to receive federal funds for
acquisition, planning, anu development of state park lands. In
1986, Congress passed the Emergency Wetlands Resources Act which
required, among other things, that states must amend their SCORP
to address wetlands if they wished to remain eligible for the
federal monies.
Colorado secured approval of its SCORP in 1986, and its
wetlands amendment in 1987. Those approvals protect our
eligibility for the federal funds through 1991. Based on those
approvals, approximately $45 million dollars have been
appropriated by Congress for use in Colorado. The Bush
Administration has indicated it will soon release the substantial
LCWF funds impounded during the Reagan years. However, no formal
commitment has been made, so the incentive to renew the approval
of Colorado's SCORP for 1991 and beyond remains unquantifiable.