79–010

Calendar No. 907

106TH CONGRESS REPORT

2d Session " ! SENATE 106–460

COLORADO CANYONS NATIONAL CONSERVATION AREA

AND BLACK RIDGE CANYONS WILDERNESS ACT OF 2000

OCTOBER 2 (legislative day, SEPTEMBER 22), 2000.—Ordered to be printed

Mr. MURKOWSKI, from the Committee on Energy and Natural

Resources, submitted the following

REPORT

[To accompany H.R. 4275]

The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, to which was

referred the Act (H.R. 4275) to establish the Colorado Canyons National Conservation Area and the Black Ridge Canyons Wilderness,

and for other purposes, having considered the same, reports favorably thereon without amendment and recommends that the Act do

pass.

PURPOSE OF THE MEASURE

The purpose of H.R. 4275 is to designate the Colorado Canyons

National Conservation Area, comprising approximately 122,300

acres, and the Black Ridge Canyons Wilderness Area, comprising

approximately 75,550 acres, in western Colorado and eastern Utah.

BACKGROUND AND NEED

Located north and west of the rapidly growing city of Grand

Junction in western Colorado, the Colorado Canyons and Black

Ridge Canyons area in Mesa County, Colorado and Grand County,

Utah, contain unique and nationally important features. The lands

are diverse, ranging from pinyon juniper and sagebrush mesas to

steep red rock canyons cutting into the landscape, forming natural

arches, caves and alcoves. The Colorado Canyons area includes tremendous wildlife, scenic, recreational, and paleontological resources. Establishment of the Colorado Canyons National Conservation Area and the Black Ridge Canyons Wilderness Area

seeks to protect and enhance these resources.

Each year, more than 100,000 visitors use these public lands for

a variety of recreational uses, including biking the Kokopelli Trail,

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hiking through and among the sandstone arches of Rattlesnake

Canyon, floating the red rock canyons of the Colorado River, viewing the dinosaur quarries and experiencing the solitude of the wilderness. This recreational use is expected to increase as the population of Grand Junction and surrounding communities continues

to grow. At the same time, more and more Americans are discovering public lands as the national interest in outdoor recreation

continues to climb. This increasing demand for high quality recreational experiences can lead to unacceptable damage to fragile

landscapes if those landscapes are not appropriately managed.

The legislation will protect these fragile and important lands

through special designations which formally establish long-term

management objectives and describe the appropriate balance between traditional uses, such as grazing and recreation, and resource protection.

Central to the landscape is the Colorado River, which is specifically excluded (up to the 100-year high water mark) from both the

Wilderness and National Conservation Area designations because

any claims on the River or its water could have an extremely significant impact on water rights in Colorado

LEGISLATIVE HISTORY

H.R. 4275 passed the House of Representatives by voice vote and

was referred to the Committee on Energy on Natural Resources on

July 25, 2000. The Subcommittee on Forests and Public Land Management held a hearing on H.R. 4275 on September 13, 2000. At

the business meeting on September 20, 2000, the Committee on

Energy and Natural Resources ordered H.R. 4275 favorably reported without amendment.

COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATIONS

The Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, in

open business session on September 20, 2000, by a voice vote of a

quorum present, recommends that the Senate pass H.R. 4275 without amendment.

SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS

Section 1 describes the short title.

Subsection 2(a) describes the findings of Congress.

Subsection 2(b) describes the purpose of the Act.

Subsection 3 defines key terms used in the Act.

Section 4 designates the Colorado Canyons National Conservation Area encompassing approximately 122,300 acres of public land

in the States of Colorado and Utah.

Section 5 designates the Black Ridge Canyons Wilderness encompassing approximately 75,550 acres in Mesa County, Colorado and

Grand County, Utah to be managed as a component of the National

Wilderness Preservation System.

Section 6(a) directs the Secretary to manage the Conservation

Area to conserve, protect and enhance resources in accordance with

applicable laws.

Subsection 6(b) directs the Secretary to allow only such uses that

benefit the purposes of the Conservation Area.

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Subsection 6(c) directs the Secretary to withdraw the lands within the Conservation Area and Wilderness Area from public land

laws and mining laws, subject to valid existing rights. Nothing in

the Act affects the discretionary authority of the Secretary to grant,

issue, renew rights-of-way or other land use authorizations.

Subsection 6(d) permits motorized vehicles on designated roads

and trail except for emergencies and administrative purposes.

Subsection 6(e) directs the Secretary to manage lands designated

as wilderness by the Act in accordance with the Wilderness Act.

Subsection 6(f) requires that hunting, fishing and trapping be allowed in accordance with State laws and provides that the heads

of the Utah or Colorado Divisions of Wildlife or the Secretary can

issue regulations to restrict these activities for reasons of safety,

administration, public use and enjoyment.

Subsection 6(g) requires the Secretary to issue and administer

grazing permits on lands in the Conservation Area in accordance

with applicable laws and within the Wilderness in accordance with

provisions of the Wilderness Act and guidelines set forth in Appendix A of House Report 101–405 of the 101st Congress.

Subsection 6(h) directs the Secretary to complete a management

plan within 3 years which describes appropriate uses, considers existing information, provides for continued management of a utility

corridor, considers historical involvement of local community and

includes all public lands between the boundary of the Conservation

Area and the edge of the Colorado River.

Subsection 6(i) describes Congress’s intent that no buffers around

the Conservation Area or Wilderness be created or that no activity

on private lands up to the boundary be precluded.

Subsection 6(j) directs future acquisitions of private inholdings be

acquired by donation, exchange or purchase from willing seller and

be managed in accordance with the Act.

Subsection 6(k) permits the Secretary to establish minimal interpretive facilities in cooperation with others as appropriate to protect resources.

Subsection 6(l) describes water rights.

Paragraphs (1) and (2) documents Congress’s findings in regards

to water rights, notes that nothing in the Act constitutes reservation of a water right, affects any water rights, establishes a precedent with regard to future conservation area or wilderness designations of affects existing interstate compacts or apportionment decrees.

Paragraph (3) directs the Secretary to follow requirements of the

law of the State of Colorado to obtain new water rights.

Paragraph (4) prohibits the Secretary to fund, assist, authorize

or permits new water resources facilities within the wilderness

area, except existing facilities may be used, operated, maintained

and modified as needed.

Paragraph (5) states neither the conservation area or wilderness

area includes the Colorado River within their boundaries and notes

the Act does not affect the Secretary’s authority to manage recreational uses of the Colorado or manage use of the lands between

the Colorado River and the boundary of the conservation area. The

Secretary is directed to withdraw the lands between the Colorado

River and the boundary of the conservation area from public land

laws and mining laws, subject to valid existing rights.

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Section 7 directs the Secretary to prepare a map for the conservation area and wilderness area, and permits corrections for

clerical and typographical errors. The map is required to be available to the public. In the case of discrepancy between the map and

the descriptions in the Act, the map shall control.

Section 8 directs the Secretaries to establish an advisory committee in accordance with applicable law to advise in regards to

preparation and implementation of the management plan and describes the representation to be included.

Section 9 directs the Secretary to continue to allow access to private inholdings for private landowners and public access to Glade

Park, Colorado.

COST AND BUDGETARY CONSIDERATIONS

The following estimates of costs of the measure has been provided by the Congressional Budget Office.

U.S. CONGRESS,

CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE,

Washington, DC, September 27, 2000.

Hon. FRANK H. MURKOWSKI,

Chairman, Committee on Energy and Natural Resources,

U.S. Senate, Washington, DC.

DEAR MR. CHAIRMAN: The Congressional Budget Office has prepared the enclosed cost estimate for H.R. 4275, the Colorado Canyons National Conservation Area and Black Ridge Canyons Wilderness Act of 2000.

If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be pleased

to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Felix LoStracco.

Sincerely,

BARRY B. ANDERSON

(For Dan L. Crippen, Director).

Enclosure.

H.R. 4275—Colorado Canyons National Conservation Area and

Black Ridge Canyons Wilderness Act of 2000

Summary: H.R. 4275 would establish the Colorado Canyons National Conservation Area on about 122,300 acres of federal land in

Colorado and Utah. The legislation also would designate the Black

Ridge Canyons Wilderness, consisting of about 75,550 acres in

those states.

CBO estimates that implementing H.R. 4275 would cost about $3

million over the 2001–2005 period, assuming appropriation of the

necessary amounts. Enacting this legislation could affect offsetting

receipts (a form of direct spending); therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures would apply, but CBO estimates that any such effects would

be less than $500,000 a year. H.R. 4275 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in the Unfunded

Mandates Reform Act (UMRA) and would impose no costs on state,

local, or tribal governments.

Estimated cost to the Federal Government: For this estimate,

CBO assumes that H.R. 4275 will be enacted near the start of fiscal year 2001. We also assume that the necessary funds will be appropriated starting in fiscal year 2001 and that outlays will follow

the historical spending pattern for similar activities.

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Spending subject to appropriation

Under H.R. 4275, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) would

administer lands in the proposed conservation and wilderness

areas. The legislation would direct the Secretary of the Interior to

establish an advisory committee and would require BLM to develop, within three years, a comprehensive management plan for

the proposed conservation and wilderness areas in consultation

with that committee.

Based on information from BLM, CBO estimates that implementing H.R. 4275 would cost about $3 million over the 2001–2005

period, assuming appropriation of the necessary funds. That estimate includes the cost of adding staff and administrative services

to the area, upgrading and maintaining existing infrastructure and

facilities, establishing and operating the advisory committee, and

preparing the management plan required by the act. According to

BLM, the agency does not expect the management plan would require new activities or facilities that would significantly increase

federal costs. As a result, we estimate that implementing the management plan required by the legislation would cost less than

$500,000 a year. Because the agency would have three years to develop that plan, we estimate that any spending to implement it

would not occur until 2004.

Direct spending (including offsetting receipts)

H.R. 4275 would withdraw federal land in the proposed conservation and wilderness areas, as well as federal land between the

boundary of the conservation area and the high-water mark of the

Colorado River, from mining, mineral leasing, and geothermal leasing, subject to valid existing rights. Enacting those provisions could

result in forgone receipts from those lands over the next five years

if, under current law, the land would generate receipts from mineral and geothermal development. Based on information from BLM,

however, we estimate that any such receipts would total less than

$500,000 each year.

Pay-as-you-go considerations: The Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act sets up pay-as-you-go procedures for legislation affecting direct spending or receipts. Because provisions in

H.R. 4275 that would withdraw certain lands from mining, mineral

leasing, and geothermal leasing could affect offsetting receipts, payas-you-go procedures would apply. CBO estimates, however, that

any such effects would not be significant.

Intergovernmental and private-sector impact: H.R. 4275 contains

no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in

UMRA wand would impose no costs on state, local, or tribal governments.

Previous CBO estimate: On July 25, 2000, CBO transmitted a

cost estimate for H.R. 4275, as ordered reported by the House Committee on Resources on July 19, 2000. The two versions of the legislation are identical, as are our cost estimates.

Estimate prepared by: Federal Costs: Felix LoStracco. Impact on

State, Local, and Tribal Governments: Marjorie Miller. Impact on

the Private Sector: Lauren Marks.

Estimate approved by: Peter H. Fontaine, Deputy Assistant Director for Budget Analysis.

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REGULATORY IMPACT EVALUATION

In compliance with paragraph 11(b) of rule XXVI of the Standing

Rules of the Senate, the Committee makes the following evaluation

of the regulatory impact which would be incurred in carrying out

H.R. 4275. The bill is not a regulatory measure in the sense of imposing Government-established standards or significant economic

responsibilities on private individuals and businesses. No personal

information would be collected in administering the program.

Therefore, there would be no impact on personal privacy. Little, if

any, additional paperwork would result from the enactment of H.R.

4275, as ordered reported.

EXECUTIVE COMMUNICATIONS

On September 20, 2000, the Committee on Energy and Natural

Resources requested legislative reports from the Department of the

Interior and the Office of Management and Budget setting forth executive views on the bill. These reports had not been received at

the time the report on H.R. 4275 was filed. When the reports become available, the Chairman will request that they be printed in

the Congressional Record for the advice of the Senate.

The testimony provided by the Department of the Interior at the

Subcommittee hearing follows:

STATEMENT OF TOM FRY, DIRECTOR, BUREAU OF LAND

MANAGEMENT

Thank you for the opportunity to testify regarding S.

2784, the Santa Rosa and San Jacinto Mountains National

Monument Act, and S. 2956, the Colorado Canyons National Conservation Area and the Black Ridge Canyons

Wilderness Act. Both of these areas, the Santa Rosas in

southern California and the Ruby Canyon/Black Ridge

area of western Colorado, are deserving of the recognition

and the meaningful protections that are inherent in National Monument and National Conservation Area (NCA)

designations. The Administration supports both of these

bills.

The Administration has testified before Congress several

times this year on special protective legislation for public

lands managed by the Bureau of Land Management

(BLM). While each NCA or BLM-managed National Monument is unique, there are certain common elements, and

we have set a standard for what these special areas must

include. Critical components of a Monument or NCA include: a land, mining, and mineral withdrawal; off-highway vehicle (OHV) use limitations; and language which

charges the Secretary to allow ‘‘only such uses’’ as further

the purposes for which the monument or NCA is established. In addition, we cannot consent to any language

that represents a step backward from current management. I’d like to discuss with the subcommittee how each

of these bills successfully addresses these important criteria and describe some of the important features of these

very special places.

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S. 2784, SANTA ROSA AND SAN JACINTO MOUNTAINS NATIONAL

MONUMENT ACT

The Santa Rosa and San Jacinto Mountains, covering

272,000 acres in this Monument proposal, are areas of

great contrast. Nowhere else can you find the juxtaposition

of outstanding biological, scenic, cultural and recreation

values bordering a rapidly growing population center and

world-class resort destination. Much of the growth and

prosperity of the Coachella Valley is a result of its proximity to these great natural areas and that growth is now

the biggest threat to its preservation.

The unique combination of extraordinary natural values

of the Santa Rosa and San Jacinto Mountains adjacent to

a growing urban complex has long been recognized as deserving special protection. In 1990, Interior Secretary

Manuel Lujan designated the Santa Rosa Mountains as a

National Scenic Area. A cooperative effort among the

BLM, State and local governments, the Agua Caliente

Band of Cahuilla Indians, private organizations, and property owners, this administrative designation was the first

step to protect the 194,000 acres. However, the current

designation cannot provide the permanent protection necessary to ensure that future generations visiting the Santa

Rosas will still be able to see a Golden Eagle soar over

them, a Peninsular Ranges Bighorn Sheep clamber

through them or a Desert Tortoise crawl across them. A

National Monument designation can provide that insurance. Early in 1999 a local, grass-roots effort was initiated

to seek support for just such a National Monument designation. Responding to that call, Secretary Babbitt made

the first of several visits in August 1999 to begin listening

to the local community on how best to protect the area.

The resource values in this special area are as diverse

as any area that the Federal government manages. The

area is home to five distinct ‘‘life zones’’ from Sonoran

Desert to Arctic Alpine resulting in an exceptionally diverse biological population. Over 500 species of plants and

a suite of Federally-listed threatened and endangered species call the Santa Rosas home. Premier among these is

the Federally-endangered Peninsular Ranges Bighorn

Sheep whose population has plummeted so that today only

about 300 remain. Desert oases, natural hot springs, and

verdant riparian areas dot this landscape.

Likewise the cultural and archaeological resources of the

region abound. A number of sites sacred to the Agua

Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians, whose ancestors inhabited most of the area, are within the proposed monument.

Networks of trails connect village sites, campsites and

other areas of importance to the Tribe. The Tribe presently

manages portions of the proposed Monument within its

reservation boundaries and will continue to do so after the

designation.

Recreational use of the Santa Rosas is, and should continue to be, an important use of the mountains. Hiking,

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biking, camping and horseback riding are all legitimate

uses which should, and can, continue in a way compatible

with meaningful protection of the region.

S. 2784 meets the important tests that we have set out

for these special areas. First it contains a complete withdrawal from land laws, mineral leasing laws and the mining laws. This withdrawal, while protecting valid existing

rights, assures us that these public lands will not be disposed of in the future, that they will not be pockmarked

with mining claims and that no new oil and gas wells or

sand and gravel pits will appear within the monument on

public lands. As the Director of the multiple-use agency

managing the majority of the public lands in the West, I

believe that mineral production is an important use of

BLM’s public lands when it occurs in the right place and

is done the right way. The protection of special areas, such

as the Santa Rosas, is also an important part of BLM’s

multiple-use mandate as established by the Federal Land

Policy and Management Act. The legislation also includes

new strong limitations on off-highway vehicle use within

the Monument and states that the Secretary shall allow

‘‘only such uses’’ of the lands within the Monument as further the purposes for which it is created.

Senator Feinstein and Congresswoman Bono have both

worked hard to see that the bill before us today is a good

bill. Through long negotiations and extensive compromise

on all sides, we have a bill we can support and will provide

real protections for this very special area.

S. 2956, COLORADO CANYONS NATIONAL CONSERVATION AREA

AND BLACK RIDGE CANYONS WILDERNESS ACT

Located north and west of the growing city of Grand

Junction in western Colorado, the Ruby Canyon/Black

Ridge area covered by the legislation encompasses over

122,000 acres of magnificent lands, including over 75,00

acres that make up the Black Ridge Canyon Wilderness

Study Area (WSA) that the bill would designate as wilderness. Each year, more than 100,000 visitors come to these

public lands to bike the Kokopelli Trail, hike through and

among the awe-inspiring sandstone arches of Rattlesnake

Canyon, float the red rock canyons of the Colorado River,

marvel at the dinosaur quarries and revel in the solitude

of extraordinary wilderness.

Carved over millions of years by the Colorado River and

its tributaries, this northern edge of the Colorado Plateau

is home to a wide range of geological and other natural

wonders. The evolution of life on earth can be read on the

many canyon walls. From the Precambrian crystalline

rocks predating the evolution of higher life forms at the

bottom of the canyons, to Triassic sandstone attesting to

the ancient desert that was once here, to the abundant dinosaur bones in the Jurassic strata, the geologic history is

accessible to scientists and schoolchildren alike.

For over 100 years, paleontologists have appreciated the

incredible resource this area presents. Dinosaur Hill,

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Fruita Paleontological Area, and the Mygatt-Moore Dinosaur Quarry have been, and continue to be, the source for

significant finds. Brachiosaur, Apatosaur, Dipoldocus, and

Ceratosaur bones have all been recovered from these areas

furthering our scientific knowledge. Today, while scientific

recovery work continues, the BLM has created interpretive

walks and provides information to allow access and understanding to nonscientists as well as scientists.

This is a landscape where scale is important. From the

awesome 300-foot wide amphitheater carved in the side of

Mee Canyon to sheer cliff walls and waterfalls in the bottom of many canyons, an individual is dwarfed by the

sheer size of a myriad of geological formations. Natural

arches are found throughout the area, but Rattlesnake

Canyon has a wondrous concentration of huge arches and

related alcove features.

The area also is a haven for an incredible range of

fauna. Desert bighorn sheep, mule deer, antelope, mountain lions and smaller mammals inhabit the region along

with peregrine falcons, eagles and other raptors. The Colorado River running through the proposed NCA is home to

four species of endangered fish—the humpback chub, pike

minnow, bonytail chub and razorback sucker. In addition,

the riparian communities found along the Colorado River

are a significant biological resource of great importance to

many forms of wildlife.

Recreation, including hiking, floating and mountain

biking, is a significant and appropriate use of the area.

The Black Ridge Canyons wilderness area provides accessible opportunities for solitude and discovery for over

25,000 hikers annually. Twenty-five miles of the world-renown mountain-bike Kokopelli Trail traverses the NCA as

it traces a 140-mile path from Grand Junction to Moab,

Utah. The Ruby Canyon/Black Ridge area is one of stark

beauty and tremendous natural assets—it deserves designation as a National Conservation Area. S. 2956, which

is identical to H.R. 4275 as passed by the House of Representatives, includes the important provisions that must

be in an NCA. It includes the complete land, mineral and

mining withdrawal, ‘‘only such uses’’ language and restrictions on off-highway vehicle use that we have established

as critical elements. In addition, this bill designates over

75,000 acres, including just over 5,000 acres in Utah, as

the Black Ridge Canyons Wilderness, and it does so clearly

consistent with the provisions of the Wilderness Act.

I would like to highlight briefly one provision of the bill

that may seem unusual at first glance, but we can support

it in the context of this legislation and in this particular

conservation area. Under the bill the Colorado river, to the

100-year flood plain, will not be included within the NCA.

While we would oppose such a provision in most cases, we

can support it because of the specifics of the situation. As

the Chairman and members of this Committee are well

aware, water in the West is a highly-charged issue and

none more so than water from the Colorado river. The ColVerDate 11-MAY-2000 22:57 Oct 03, 2000 Jkt 079010 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6659 Sfmt 6969 E:\HR\OC\SR460.XXX pfrm08 PsN: SR460
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orado River is a major source of water for the states of Colorado, Utah, Nevada, Arizona and California as well as for

the northern states of the Republic of Mexico. In the context of this politically-charged climate, we believe that excluding the Colorado river from management under the

Act represents a reasonable compromise.

This does not, however, mean removing management of

these lands from the legislation and the important protections it provides. The legislation not only withdraws the

public lands within the 100-year flood plain from the land

laws, mining and mineral leasing laws, but it also makes

clear that the Secretary shall manage recreation and other

uses of these lands in the same manner as the lands within the NCA. It is only with these important provisions that

we can support the legislation.

CONCLUSION

Mr. Chairman, these two bills, S. 2784 to create the

Santa Rosa and San Jacinto Mountains National Monument and S. 2956 which establishes the Colorado Canyons

National Conservation Area and Black Ridge Canyons Wilderness, are good bills. They provide important new protections to these special areas without diminishing current

management. We support both of these bills and urge their

speedy passage.

CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW

In compliance with paragraph 12 of rule XXVI of the Standing

Rules of the Senate, the Committee notes that no changes in existing law are made by H.R. 4275, as ordered reported.

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