PUBLIC LAW 106–353—OCT. 24, 2000

COLORADO CANYONS NATIONAL

CONSERVATION AREA AND BLACK RIDGE

CANYONS WILDERNESS ACT OF 2000

114 STAT. 1374 PUBLIC LAW 106–353—OCT. 24, 2000

Public Law 106–353

106th Congress

An Act

To establish the Colorado Canyons National Conservation Area and the Black

Ridge Canyons Wilderness, and for other purposes.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of

the United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Colorado Canyons National

Conservation Area and Black Ridge Canyons Wilderness Act of

2000’’.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE.

(a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds that certain areas located in

the Grand Valley in Mesa County, Colorado, and Grand County,

Utah, should be protected and enhanced for the benefit and enjoyment of present and future generations. These areas include the

following:

(1) The areas making up the Black Ridge and Ruby Canyons of the Grand Valley and Rabbit Valley, which contain

unique and valuable scenic, recreational, multiple use

opportunities (including grazing), paleontological, natural, and

wildlife components enhanced by the rural western setting

of the area, provide extensive opportunities for recreational

activities, and are publicly used for hiking, camping, and

grazing, and are worthy of additional protection as a national

conservation area.

(2) The Black Ridge Canyons Wilderness Study Area has

wilderness value and offers unique geological, paleontological,

scientific, and recreational resources.

(b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this Act is to conserve, protect,

and enhance for the benefit and enjoyment of present and future

generations the unique and nationally important values of the

public lands described in section 4(b), including geological, cultural,

paleontological, natural, scientific, recreational, environmental,

biological, wilderness, wildlife education, and scenic resources of

such public lands, by establishing the Colorado Canyons National

Conservation Area and the Black Ridge Canyons Wilderness in

the State of Colorado and the State of Utah.

SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

In this Act:

(1) CONSERVATION AREA.—The term ‘‘Conservation Area’’

means the Colorado Canyons National Conservation Area established by section 4(a).

16 USC

460mmm–1.

16 USC

460mmm.

16 USC 460mmm

note.

Colorado

Canyons

National

Conservation

Area and Black

Ridge Canyons

Wilderness Act of

2000.

Utah.

Oct. 24, 2000

[H.R. 4275]

PUBLIC LAW 106–353—OCT. 24, 2000 114 STAT. 1375

(2) COUNCIL.—The term ‘‘Council’’ means the Colorado Canyons National Conservation Area Advisory Council established

under section 8.

(3) MANAGEMENT PLAN.—The term ‘‘management plan’’

means the management plan developed for the Conservation

Area under section 6(h).

(4) MAP.—The term ‘‘Map’’ means the map entitled ‘‘Proposed Colorado Canyons National Conservation Area and Black

Ridge Canyons Wilderness Area’’ and dated July 18, 2000.

(5) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means the Secretary

of the Interior, acting through the Director of the Bureau

of Land Management.

(6) WILDERNESS.—The term ‘‘Wilderness’’ means the Black

Ridge Canyons Wilderness so designated in section 5.

SEC. 4. COLORADO CANYONS NATIONAL CONSERVATION AREA.

(a) IN GENERAL.—There is established the Colorado Canyons

National Conservation Area in the State of Colorado and the State

of Utah.

(b) AREAS INCLUDED.—The Conservation Area shall consist of

approximately 122,300 acres of public land as generally depicted

on the Map.

SEC. 5. BLACK RIDGE CANYONS WILDERNESS DESIGNATION.

Certain lands in Mesa County, Colorado, and Grand County,

Utah, which comprise approximately 75,550 acres as generally

depicted on the Map, are hereby designated as wilderness and

therefore as a component of the National Wilderness Preservation

System. Such component shall be known as the Black Ridge Canyons Wilderness.

SEC. 6. MANAGEMENT.

(a) CONSERVATION AREA.—The Secretary shall manage the Conservation Area in a manner that—

(1) conserves, protects, and enhances the resources of the

Conservation Area specified in section 2(b); and

(2) is in accordance with—

(A) the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of

1976 (43 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.); and

(B) other applicable law, including this Act.

(b) USES.—The Secretary shall allow only such uses of the

Conservation Area as the Secretary determines will further the

purposes for which the Conservation Area is established.

(c) WITHDRAWALS.—Subject to valid existing rights, all Federal

land within the Conservation Area and the Wilderness and all

land and interests in land acquired for the Conservation Area

or the Wilderness by the United States are withdrawn from—

(1) all forms of entry, appropriation, or disposal under

the public land laws;

(2) location, entry, and patent under the mining laws;

and

(3) the operation of the mineral leasing, mineral materials,

and geothermal leasing laws, and all amendments thereto.

Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to affect discretionary

authority of the Secretary under other Federal laws to grant, issue,

or renew rights-of-way or other land use authorizations consistent

with the other provisions of this Act.

(d) OFF-HIGHWAY VEHICLE USE.—

16 USC

460mmm–4.

16 USC

460mmm–3, 1132

note.

16 USC

460mmm–2.

114 STAT. 1376 PUBLIC LAW 106–353—OCT. 24, 2000

(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in paragraph (2), use

of motorized vehicles in the Conservation Area—

(A) before the effective date of a management plan

under subsection (h), shall be allowed only on roads and

trails designated for use of motor vehicles in the management plan that applies on the date of the enactment of

this Act to the public lands in the Conservation Area;

and

(B) after the effective date of a management plan under

subsection (h), shall be allowed only on roads and trails

designated for use of motor vehicles in that management

plan.

(2) ADMINISTRATIVE AND EMERGENCY RESPONSE USE.—Paragraph (1) shall not limit the use of motor vehicles in the

Conservation Area as needed for administrative purposes or

to respond to an emergency.

(e) WILDERNESS.—Subject to valid existing rights, lands designated as wilderness by this Act shall be managed by the Secretary,

as appropriate, in accordance with the Wilderness Act (16 U.S.C.

1131 et seq.) and this Act, except that, with respect to any wilderness areas designated by this Act, any reference in the Wilderness

Act to the effective date of the Wilderness Act shall be deemed

to be a reference to the date of the enactment of this Act.

(f ) HUNTING, TRAPPING, AND FISHING.—

(1) IN GENERAL.—Hunting, trapping, and fishing shall be

allowed within the Conservation Area and the Wilderness in

accordance with applicable laws and regulations of the United

States and the States of Colorado and Utah.

(2) AREA AND TIME CLOSURES.—The head of the Colorado

Division of Wildlife (in reference to land within the State of

Colorado), the head of the Utah Division of Wildlife (in reference

to land within the State of Utah), or the Secretary after consultation with the Colorado Division of Wildlife (in reference

to land within the State of Colorado) or the head of the Utah

Division of Wildlife (in reference to land within the State of

Utah), may issue regulations designating zones where, and

establishing limited periods when, hunting, trapping, or fishing

shall be prohibited in the Conservation Area or the Wilderness

for reasons of public safety, administration, or public use and

enjoyment.

(g) GRAZING.—

(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided by paragraph (2),

the Secretary shall issue and administer any grazing leases

or permits in the Conservation Area and the Wilderness in

accordance with the same laws (including regulations) and

Executive orders followed by the Secretary in issuing and

administering grazing leases and permits on other land under

the jurisdiction of the Bureau of Land Management.

(2) GRAZING IN WILDERNESS.—Grazing of livestock in the

Wilderness shall be administered in accordance with the provisions of section 4(d)(4) of the Wilderness Act (16 U.S.C.

1133(d)(4)), in accordance with the guidelines set forth in

Appendix A of House Report 101–405 of the 101st Congress.

(h) MANAGEMENT PLAN.—

(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 3 years after the date

of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall develop a

comprehensive management plan for the long-range protection

Deadline.

PUBLIC LAW 106–353—OCT. 24, 2000 114 STAT. 1377

and management of the Conservation Area and the Wilderness

and the lands described in paragraph (2)(E).

(2) PURPOSES.—The management plan shall—

(A) describe the appropriate uses and management

of the Conservation Area and the Wilderness;

(B) take into consideration any information developed

in studies of the land within the Conservation Area or

the Wilderness;

(C) provide for the continued management of the utility

corridor, Black Ridge Communications Site, and the Federal Aviation Administration site as such for the land designated on the Map as utility corridor, Black Ridge Communications Site, and the Federal Aviation Administration

site;

(D) take into consideration the historical involvement

of the local community in the interpretation and protection

of the resources of the Conservation Area and the Wilderness, as well as the Ruby Canyon/Black Ridge Integrated

Resource Management Plan, dated March 1998, which was

the result of collaborative efforts on the part of the Bureau

of Land Management and the local community; and

(E) include all public lands between the boundary of

the Conservation Area and the edge of the Colorado River

and, on such lands, the Secretary shall allow only such

recreational or other uses as are consistent with this Act.

(i) NO BUFFER ZONES.—The Congress does not intend for the

establishment of the Conservation Area or the Wilderness to lead

to the creation of protective perimeters or buffer zones around

the Conservation Area or the Wilderness. The fact that there may

be activities or uses on lands outside the Conservation Area or

the Wilderness that would not be allowed in the Conservation

Area or the Wilderness shall not preclude such activities or uses

on such lands up to the boundary of the Conservation Area or

the Wilderness consistent with other applicable laws.

( j) ACQUISITION OF LAND.—

(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may acquire non-federally

owned land within the exterior boundaries of the Conservation

Area or the Wilderness only through purchase from a willing

seller, exchange, or donation.

(2) MANAGEMENT.—Land acquired under paragraph (1)

shall be managed as part of the Conservation Area or the

Wilderness, as the case may be, in accordance with this Act.

(k) INTERPRETIVE FACILITIES OR SITES.—The Secretary may

establish minimal interpretive facilities or sites in cooperation with

other public or private entities as the Secretary considers appropriate. Any facilities or sites shall be designed to protect the

resources referred to in section 2(b).

(l) WATER RIGHTS.—

(1) FINDINGS.—Congress finds that—

(A) the lands designated as wilderness by this Act

are located at the headwaters of the streams and rivers

on those lands, with few, if any, actual or proposed water

resource facilities located upstream from such lands and

few, if any, opportunities for diversion, storage, or other

uses of water occurring outside such lands that would

adversely affect the wilderness or other values of such

lands;

114 STAT. 1378 PUBLIC LAW 106–353—OCT. 24, 2000

(B) the lands designated as wilderness by this Act

generally are not suitable for use for development of new

water resource facilities, or for the expansion of existing

facilities;

(C) it is possible to provide for proper management

and protection of the wilderness and other values of such

lands in ways different from those utilized in other legislation designating as wilderness lands not sharing the

attributes of the lands designated as wilderness by this

Act.

(2) STATUTORY CONSTRUCTION.—

(A) Nothing in this Act shall constitute or be construed

to constitute either an express or implied reservation of

any water or water rights with respect to the lands designated as a national conservation area or as wilderness

by this Act.

(B) Nothing in this Act shall affect any conditional

or absolute water rights in the State of Colorado existing

on the date of the enactment of this Act.

(C) Nothing in this subsection shall be construed as

establishing a precedent with regard to any future national

conservation area or wilderness designations.

(D) Nothing in this Act shall be construed as limiting,

altering, modifying, or amending any of the interstate compacts or equitable apportionment decrees that apportion

water among and between the State of Colorado and other

States.

(3) COLORADO WATER LAW.—The Secretary shall follow the

procedural and substantive requirements of the law of the

State of Colorado in order to obtain and hold any new water

rights with respect to the Conservation Area and the Wilderness.

(4) NEW PROJECTS.—

(A) As used in this paragraph, the term ‘‘water resource

facility’’ means irrigation and pumping facilities, reservoirs,

water conservation works, aqueducts, canals, ditches, pipelines, wells, hydropower projects, and transmission and

other ancillary facilities, and other water diversion, storage,

and carriage structures. Such term does not include any

such facilities related to or used for the purpose of livestock

grazing.

(B) Except as otherwise provided by section 6(g) or

other provisions of this Act, on and after the date of the

enactment of this Act, neither the President nor any other

officer, employee, or agent of the United States shall fund,

assist, authorize, or issue a license or permit for the

development of any new water resource facility within the

wilderness area designated by this Act.

(C) Except as provided in this paragraph, nothing in

this Act shall be construed to affect or limit the use, operation, maintenance, repair, modification, or replacement

of water resource facilities in existence on the date of

the enactment of this Act within the boundaries of the

Wilderness.

(5) BOUNDARIES ALONG COLORADO RIVER.—(A) Neither the

Conservation Area nor the Wilderness shall include any part

of the Colorado River to the 100-year high water mark.

PUBLIC LAW 106–353—OCT. 24, 2000 114 STAT. 1379

(B) Nothing in this Act shall affect the authority that

the Secretary may or may not have to manage recreational

uses on the Colorado River, except as such authority may

be affected by compliance with paragraph (3). Nothing in this

Act shall be construed to affect the authority of the Secretary

to manage the public lands between the boundary of the Conservation Area and the edge of the Colorado River.

(C) Subject to valid existing rights, all lands owned by

the Federal Government between the 100-year high water mark

on each shore of the Colorado River, as designated on the

Map from the line labeled ‘‘Line A’’ on the east to the boundary

between the States of Colorado and Utah on the west, are

hereby withdrawn from—

(i) all forms of entry, appropriation, or disposal under

the public land laws;

(ii) location, entry, and patent under the mining laws;

and

(iii) the operation of the mineral leasing, mineral materials, and geothermal leasing laws.

SEC. 7. MAPS AND LEGAL DESCRIPTIONS.

(a) IN GENERAL.—As soon as practicable after the date of the

enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit to Congress

a copy of the Map and a legal description of the Conservation

Area and of the Wilderness.

(b) FORCE AND EFFECT.—The Map and legal descriptions shall

have the same force and effect as if included in this Act, except

that the Secretary may correct clerical and typographical errors

in the Map and the legal descriptions.

(c) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY.—Copies of the Map and the legal

descriptions shall be on file and available for public inspection

in—

(1) the Office of the Director of the Bureau of Land Management;

(2) the Grand Junction District Office of the Bureau of

Land Management in Colorado;

(3) the appropriate office of the Bureau of Land Management in Colorado, if the Grand Junction District Office is

not deemed the appropriate office; and

(4) the appropriate office of the Bureau of Land Management in Utah.

(d) MAP CONTROLLING.—Subject to section 6(l)(3), in the case

of a discrepancy between the Map and the descriptions, the Map

shall control.

SEC. 8. ADVISORY COUNCIL.

(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than 6 months after the date

of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall establish an

advisory council to be known as the ‘‘Colorado Canyons National

Conservation Area Advisory Council’’.

(b) DUTY.—The Council shall advise the Secretary with respect

to preparation and implementation of the management plan,

including budgetary matters, for the Conservation Area and the

Wilderness.

(c) APPLICABLE LAW.—The Council shall be subject to—

(1) the Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.);

and

Deadline.

16 USC

460mmm–6.

16 USC

460mmm–5.

114 STAT. 1380 PUBLIC LAW 106–353—OCT. 24, 2000

LEGISLATIVE HISTORY—H.R. 4275:

SENATE REPORTS: No. 106–460 (Comm. on Energy and Natural Resources).

CONGRESSIONAL RECORD, Vol. 146 (2000):

July 25, considered and passed House.

Oct. 5, considered and passed Senate.

Æ

(2) the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976

(43 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.).

(d) MEMBERS.—The Council shall consist of 10 members to

be appointed by the Secretary including, to the extent practicable:

(1) A member of or nominated by the Mesa County Commission.

(2) A member nominated by the permittees holding grazing

allotments within the Conservation Area or the Wilderness.

(3) A member of or nominated by the Northwest Resource

Advisory Council.

(4) Seven members residing in, or within reasonable proximity to, Mesa County, Colorado, with recognized backgrounds

reflecting—

(A) the purposes for which the Conservation Area or

Wilderness was established; and

(B) the interests of the stakeholders that are affected

by the planning and management of the Conservation Area

and the Wilderness.

SEC. 9. PUBLIC ACCESS.

(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall continue to allow private

landowners reasonable access to inholdings in the Conservation

Area and Wilderness.

(b) GLADE PARK.—The Secretary shall continue to allow public

right of access, including commercial vehicles, to Glade Park, Colorado, in accordance with the decision in Board of County Commissioners of Mesa County v. Watt (634 F. Supp. 1265 (D.Colo.; May

2, 1986)).

Approved October 24, 2000.

16 USC

460mmm–7.