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<br />Editorial 0a..n B,~.ol
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<br />By The ARtiOrintcd P'"tSH .
<br />:}Il'!'l' i:-: II i-;lllllp1inJ! (If t'l.'!..""1I1 ~Il\illll"illl~ I'rllm l"'\II'
<br />I'lidn nl'w~I>II(k'J"!l,.
<br />On turning the Great Sand
<br />
<br />Dunes into a national park:
<br />
<br />.Colorndo'lnwlnnl\C'fS ill fnvor urturnillJ,! till' UI't'nl
<br />Rimel J)UI1C"R into n nntionnl pi\~k: S~'ll~. Wll:-'!W
<br />Allnrclnhcl Btm Cl\Inphl.Ii,nntl Reps. Di:\llll Dt'Gette,
<br />t-.1nrk Uclnll. Scott Mclnnis. Boh SchnrTl'r nne! 'Tom
<br />'rnncrcc.lo.' -'.~ ~ ~..
<br />'rho!'c n~Rin&1 it: l1ep. Joel 'leney.
<br />. Any mno mOrl' ri~ht thnl) hif' Ill'ij.lhhlll'~ 1l\:IY
<br />conBlitutc ThnrC:1U'S rnnjorily of one. hut nnly ill
<br />'T'rivinl PllMUlit nnel morn! philosophy. In C()n~I'l'~f;..
<br />. hC'lIlikcly to be jWoit nnothcr I0gef.
<br />:Still,Hl.ncy mn'kC1'ipoints worth con!='ll)crinJ:. Fil'l'lt,.
<br />. hi- thinks the hnck('rs mny hc:o lryin~ 10 circ:umvl'IH
<br />,the. involvcomt'nt of the U.S. Pnrk &'l-vic(' in <il'll'r. J
<br />",ining~hethert.on.'ClnJ;siry themon\lmcollt. Hl' hnR i
<br />'n:spcoci.nl interest in thnt i66UC: In Hl92, he f;pon. )
<br />tl:hrt'(I"nn amendment to n budget bill thnt "-'quires I
<br />ttre Pnrk ScoNice to evnlunle 'porentinl ~ pm'h to I'
<br />make sure they mC'Ct the qunlifications lwrul'c COil'
<br />s:TCBS .enn net. . '. ' r
<br />:St'eOncl he's not convincC'cl thedl\ncofl ofTl'r enouj:th :
<br />lei constit:lte 0 pork. AR he pili!; it: "Vou J:lO rhC'!:"c, yO\! !'
<br />l~k and yuu no)', That'll 0 !TIncniflCt.'nt pile or &'0(1,' !
<br />rl1(\n you Rct ih)'ourcnrnncl drivt,orr,"Thl'dl'Il~s;nr(' 1
<br />fint! .n~ n IUltionnlmonumC'nt, he ~/IYR, hut'''tht: f.
<br />m;tionnl pnrk d~sil!nntion is n RPl'Cinl ~iJ:l"ni(jcnOl."l' :
<br />1h01 fl.houJd not ht! mu;i~ned tu CVl'!)' Ilntnrnl re- '
<br />l'IGurc(','" .
<br />:W" think hc'tI ptohnhly wrong :!h(nlt thl' dum'li'
<br />worthillt.'s$l, ('flpcdnl1y ir YOli ndd 011 till' 100,000.
<br />n~rc Rncn Hnnch, nn ncljnr.cnt pnr'Cel thnt tlie J:l'ov.
<br />ernnltlnt wouh.llih to buy, But he is right in anyiJlR .
<br />t~ntthe Pnrk SC'I'Yicc Rhould review then'pplicntiun, )'
<br />:The rl'Clcrnlizing or watC'T rights hns long hcC'n ,
<br />flomethihJ::" thnt our congreJ;sionnl represent;ttiws
<br />hnvb miled n.R"ninFit,' ospccinlly the JlC"puhlicnlls,
<br />Now hC'rC' t'hC'v nl"(' \lr~in~ the rC'dernli?Jltilln OrBomc
<br />l'u:h18. .
<br />: EVl'11 Heney ndmittcct tllnt protocting the rnneh'fI
<br />~nte,.. rights "woulc1'"lmost tempt me to Rupport it
<br />hpin~ n nllliomd pllI'k,"
<br />:At lenRt the push for pnrk stntus is locully driYl'll,
<br />'I:hnf~ the' most important pnrl, Iffi not :llol11ethinJ:
<br />Ihlhhitl is tryin~ to push clown loc...1! thrCln[~ rJ'om
<br />Wnshin~ton.
<br />:'1'here nre still 80me qucstions_ to he rc~olvl'll.
<br />~nJ:l"unche County, in which the rnneh lies, is worried
<br />n;hout 10l'linJ:: the tme rcvenucF.Jmm it nnel wnntJ;
<br />,('-<fernl pn)'menVi in lil'l1 fir tn:O:l'~, And then"s nl.
<br />~n\'s the r"flr th:1.t the owncrf: or the ,':\Och mnv.
<br />cl~I~Ulnd more Ihnll the govcrnment (or thc Nn!ur~
<br />Conscrvnm'y. whir.h is it~ purchmiinj::: i'I.J:C'llt) call
<br />ll.rrorcl.
<br />~ 'nut we he\ieve the problems enn he Mlvcod nncl
<br />t'}{nt lhe Snncl Dunes would be n .....orthy nclditionll!
<br />t6the nllLiol\:\] p~rk l'Iys~em, I'
<br />~; f)rnvpt'Roch,'Morinlnin NC'wl; ,
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<br />~~l Summit
<br />~qq13t High Dune
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<br />, . By qARY TAYLOR
<br />You know the bit. Han.Solo shifl
<br />the Millennium Falcon into h)'pe
<br />speed and the star field suddenJ
<br />Oashes past' the windshield.
<br />This is thescene that the Vallcy
<br />Steve Chaney found himselfin S.
<br />urday. Events that could lead t
<br />elevating the Great Sand Dune
<br />National Monument to nation,
<br />park status had, in a burstofspeee
<br />pinned him.~o his chair and rushe
<br />bi at 10 tim~s the speed of SDune
<br />His cheeks ~howed distortion an
<br />happiness.,. .
<br />If Chubacka the Wookieof Stc
<br />.Wars fameihad been present i
<br />thi.room full of dignitaries, h
<br />would hav.e let out his signatur
<br />grunt-a.nd nobody would' hay
<br />noticed. Most. ever);one was. gidd
<br />as if they'd Seen a great movie, bu.
<br />this on.ce.in.:a-Iifetiine Summit.
<br />High Dune y..as real. No suspen
<br />sion of disbe'lief was necessary.
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<br />The super.
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<br />Asked ir-when he came to th,
<br />Monument .as superintendent 2:
<br />months ago. that he could h.v,
<br />imag-ined the U.S. interior Becre
<br />tary in Q Detnocratic Admi.nistrn
<br />tion, the two Colorado U.S. sena
<br />tors and a Cblorado congressmal
<br />all from the Itepublican Party ane
<br />the leading I state Democrat nJ
<br />I sta,?din~ in hiis Vi~itors Centcr en
<br />l1aglng In a politICal lovc-in ane
<br />saying exactly what he. wantcI
<br />them to say, Chaney said hc woule
<br />have lost a lot of money on tha'
<br />bet.
<br />"No, I cOllidn't have imag-ined'
<br />the speed at Which his master plnr
<br />for enlarging',the monument into D
<br />park in orde, to protect it has OC.
<br />curred, he 'said. And then he
<br />Oashed a slyismile.
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<br />The maps
<br />I recall when Stev.e Chancy foune!
<br />me in the newsro.om one day six.
<br />eight months ago and rolled out
<br />those half-dozen maps showing the
<br />Monument and the surroundin~
<br />parts of the San Luis Valley. He
<br />said protecting the three-timcs.
<br />th e. si ze- of- the. Mo n urn e n t',
<br />.33,000 acres was what should be
<br />done. I thought him a smart, dedi.
<br />cated park ranger who had just
<br />taken a big bite, one" that would
<br />take years to digest.
<br />But since then, things, like cin.
<br />ematic star fields at mach 10, took
<br />off. As Staff Writer Nelda Curtiss
<br />said, just to .the right Of these
<br />words, "All aboard!"
<br />
<br />The questions
<br />
<br />I had one caller from Moffat tell
<br />me y'esterday that a federal.gov.
<br />ernmen.c purchase of The ,BacB
<br />from Gary Boyce et al was a scam
<br />and would mean the gove' 'nt
<br />would export Valley water ;h
<br />.a. pipeline over Medano Pb. . ..,1y
<br />reaction to that was: Can you lmag.
<br />ine the absolute storm of contro.
<br />versy ifthe gove.rnment did such a
<br />thing, saving Valley water ir: thi,
<br />purchase in. order to export It?
<br />My question. is: How did. tho:
<br />"higher bid for the Baca" busmes,
<br />get started lasfweek by the Pueb/c
<br />Chieftain s Erin Smith, only t.
<br />again produce big headlines t\\
<br />days later as the straw-man sto!
<br />was blown over by the huilde:
<br />Like parts is parts, "news" C~
<br />also be .news to some,
<br />There is nO other bidder for Tr
<br />Baca, especie.lJy at Boyce et aJ
<br />.outrageous -asking price. I ho;
<br />here in the shadow .of Saturday
<br />Summit at High Dune that Natul<.
<br />Conservancv State Director Mar:
<br />Burget is tough as an old boot i:
<br />his negotiations to buy The Bacn
<br />and then sell it to the feds.
<br />Don't Jet 'em win after losing,
<br />Mark.
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