U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service 

Rocky Flats 

National Wildlife Refuge 

Public Involvement Summary 

Primary 

management 

purposes of the 

Rocky Flats 

National Wildlife 

Refuge will include 

restoring and 

preserving native 

ecosystems; 

providing habitat 

for, and population 

management of, 

native plants and 

migratory and 

resident wildlife; 

conserving 

threatened and 

endangered species; 

and providing 

opportunities for 

scientific research. 

Left: 

Swainson’s Hawk. 

Rocky Flats Becomes A National 

Wildlife Refuge 

The future Rocky Flats National Wildlife 

Refuge (Refuge) was established by 

Congress on December 28, 2001. The 

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) 

is beginning development of a 

Comprehensive Conservation 

Plan/Environmental Impact Statement 

(CCP/EIS). The plan, to be completed in 

2004, will direct wildlife conservation, 

management and wildlife-dependent 

recreation at the Refuge. This Public 

Involvement Summary outlines the public 

involvement process and specifies how 

and when the public can inform the future 

management direction of the Refuge. 

Rocky Flats is a valuable addition to the 

National Wildlife Refuge System 

primarily because of the site’s 

federally-listed threatened wildlife species 

and the presence of rare plant 

communities. Additionally, the site 

provides open space and striking vistas of 

the Front Range mountain backdrop for 

numerous Denver metropolitan area 

communities. Congress determined that 

national interests would be best served 

through Service management of the 

Rocky Flats landscape as a National 

Wildlife Refuge, ensuring preservation of 

open space and wildlife habitat following 

the completion of cleanup operations 

and closure. 

Some areas of the Rocky Flats site will 

contain residual contamination and will 

require further management by the 

Department of Energy (DOE). Cleanup 

and closure issues are being handled 

separately from this planning effort. The 

Rocky Flats site will not be transferred to 

the Service until cleanup and closure by 

DOE are complete. The DOE facility 

complex near the northwest corner of the 

site, known as the National Renewable 

Energy Laboratory, will not be part of 

the Refuge. 

Public Involvement 

The purpose of developing the plan with 

public input is to craft informed decisions 

through the exchange of ideas between the 

public and the Service. The public 

involvement process ensures that 

interested and affected individuals, 

organizations, agencies and governmental 

entities are consulted and given 

opportunities to have their ideas heard. 

Throughout the three-year planning 

process, the Service will focus on 

informing the public, gathering public 

input, and analyzing public comments. 

© Paul Kerris 
Shapins Associates

© 2000 Michael Mauro 

Department of Energy 

Informing the Public 

The Service strives to keep the public 

informed about the planning process. The 

following are resources the Service will 

use to stay in touch with the public: 

 Planning Updates and Announcements --

Over the course of the three-year planning 

process, six planning updates will be 

published and distributed to the public. 

The updates report on the CCP/EIS 

process, announce all opportunities for 

public involvement and document 

workshop results. They will be mailed to 

the project’s mailing list, distributed at 

presentations and workshops, made 

accessible through community information 

networks, main branch libraries, and made 

available online. Postcards designed to 

gauge the public’s interest and to 

announce opportunities for involvement 

will be mailed out at regular intervals 

throughout the process. 

 Media Coverage -- Announcements and 

reports in local newspapers and on 

television and radio stations will notify the 

public about opportunities for involvement 

and the progress of the CCP/EIS. 

 Website -- The public may access the 

project online at rockyflats.fws.gov for 

information on the planning process and to 

download planning documents as they 

become available. 

Gathering Public Input 

Public involvement will involve both idea 

generation and idea review. 

 Public Workshops -- The public will be 

encouraged to participate in a series of 

workshops held at strategic phases of the 

plan development including Public 

Scoping, Alternative Plans and Draft Plan 

Review Workshops. The focus of these 

forums will be to generate ideas, gather 

input on refuge planning issues, and 

educate the public on refuge issues and 

the planning process. Workshops will be 

held in the communities of Arvada, 

Westminster, Broomfield, and Boulder 

during each strategic phase. 

 Focus Group Workshops – During these 

workshops, the Service will facilitate a 

discussion among technical experts about 

specific refuge issues such as habitat 

management strategies, facility 

development and recreational uses. These 

experts will be asked to generate ideas for 

future management and will assist in the 

review of planning alternatives. The 

workshops will be open to the public 

for observation. 

 Presentations & Briefing -- In order to 

keep the public and stakeholder groups 

posted on the CCP/EIS process, 

presentations and briefings will be 

conducted throughout the 

planning process. 

Analyzing Public Input 

The Service will review and consider all 

substantive comments gathered at 

workshops, other public meetings, and 

those comments received electronically 

and via mail. 

Upper Left: Refuge 

planning involves 

public review and 

comment. 

Upper Center: 

Environmental 

Education is one of 

the priorities of 

public use. 

Upper Right: 

Scientific research 

supports the 

survival of the 

threatened Preble’s 

Jumping Mouse. 

Lower Left: Arnica 

is a colorful 

addition to a rich 

diversity of native 

plants. 

Opposite: Big 

Bluestem - the chief 

grass of a rare 

plant community 

on the refuge. 
Schedule 

Development of a CCP/EIS for the future refuge will span three years and will involve seven stages: 

Planning Stage	 Public Involvement 

1. Preplanning (May 2002-July 2002) Public Involvement Process 

Reaffirm legislative purpose Published June 26, 2002 

Identify planning needs of the refuge 

Develop public involvement program and project work plan 

2. Public Involvement and Scoping (August 2002 - Oct. 2002)	 Planning Update 1 

Identify potential issues, concerns, and opportunities	 Public Workshops 1 - Scoping 

September 9,10,11,12 

Focus Group Workshops 

3. Review Vision Statement and Goals (Nov. 2002 - Dec. 2002) Planning Update 2 

Develop goals, objectives, and programming 

Refine vision statement and identify significant issues 

4. Develop and Analyze Alternatives (Jan. 2003 - May 2003)	 Planning Update 3 

Refine issues, goals, objectives and strategies Alternative Plan Workbook 

Develop alternative plans Public Workshops 2 - Alternative Plans 

5. Prepare Preliminary Draft CCP/EIS (June 2003 - Jan. 2004) Planning Update 4 

Select a preferred action alternative 

Draft compatibility determinants 

Prepare preliminary draft CCP/EIS for internal review 

6. Prepare Public Draft CCP/EIS (Feb. 2004 - June 2004)	 Draft CCP/EIS Review 

Prepare draft CCP/EIS for public review	 Planning Update 5 

Planning Workshops 3 - Draft Plans 

7. Final CCP/EIS and Record of Decision (July 2004 - Dec. 2004) Planning Update 6 

Respond to public comments Summary Brochure 

Final CCP/EIS and Record of of Decision Public Celebration - December 2004 

USFWS 
 

U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service 

Rocky Flats National Wildlife Refuge 

Building 121 

Commerce City, CO 80022 

RETURN SERVICE REQUESTED 

Stakeholders List 

The stakeholder groups that have 

expressed an interest in the 

comprehensive conservation planning 

process include: 

 State & Federal Agencies - 

State public agencies, congressional 

representatives, federal agencies, 

tribal governments 

 Communities, Organizations & Interest 

Groups - Rocky Flats Coalition of Local 

Governments and its member 

governments (Arvada, Boulder, Boulder 

County, Broomfield, Jefferson County, 

Superior and Westminster), Rocky Flats 

Citizen Advisory Board, the cities of 

Thornton, Northglenn, Golden, Lafayette, 

Louisville and other local communities, 

Rocky Flats Cold War Museum, 

environmental and conservation groups, 

community and neighborhood groups, and 

neighboring landowners 

 Public at Large - anyone who wishes to 

get involved 

Contact 

Public comments will be accepted by 

written letter or e-mail at the 

following addresses: 

Rocky Flats NWR 

Comprehensive Conservation Plan 

Attn: Laurie Shannon, 

Planning Team Leader 

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service 

Building 121 

Commerce City, CO 80022 

Ph: 303/289 0980 

Fax: 303/289 0579 

Email: rockyflats@fws.gov 

Online: http://rockyflats.fws.gov 

Rocky Flats 

National Wildlife Refuge 

BOULDER

JEFFERSON

Boulder

Denver

Golden

Northglenn

Thornton

Arvada

Westminster

Louisville

Lafayette

Superior

Broomfield

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Rocky Flats 

National 

Wildlife Refuge