I 
108TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. R. 640
To designate as wilderness certain lands within the Rocky Mountain National 
Park in the State of Colorado. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
FEBRUARY 5, 2003
Mr. UDALL of Colorado introduced the following bill; which was referred to 
the Committee on Resources 
A BILL 
To designate as wilderness certain lands within the Rocky 
Mountain National Park in the State of Colorado.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE AND PURPOSE. 
(a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 
‘‘Rocky Mountain National Park Wilderness Act’’. 
(b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this Act is to include 
in the National Wilderness Preservation System certain 
lands within the Rocky Mountain National Park, Colo-
rado, in order to protect the enduring scenic and historic 
wilderness character and unique wildlife values of the
lands as well as the scientific, educational, inspirational, 
and recreational resources, values, and opportunities of 
the lands. 
SEC. 2. DESIGNATION OF ROCKY MOUNTAIN NATIONAL 
PARK WILDERNESS. 
(a) DESIGNATION.—In furtherance of the purposes of 
the Wilderness Act (16 U.S.C. 1131 et seq.), certain lands 
within the Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado, 
which comprise approximately 249,562 acres, as generally 
depicted on the map entitled ‘‘Rocky Mountain National 
Park, Colorado Recommended Wilderness Boundaries’’, 
numbered as Map #121–60,403 and dated September 
1998, are hereby designated as wilderness and, therefore, 
as a component of the National Wilderness Preservation 
System. The designated lands shall be known as the Rocky 
Mountain National Park Wilderness. 
(b) MAP AND DESCRIPTION.—
(1) PREPARATION AND SUBMISSION.—As soon 
as practicable after the date of the enactment of this 
Act, the Secretary of the Interior shall prepare a 
map and a boundary description of the Rocky Moun-
tain National Park Wilderness designated by sub-
section (a) and file the map and boundary descrip-
tion with the Committee on Resources of the House 
of Representatives and the Committee on Energy
and Natural Resources of the Senate. The map and 
boundary description shall be on file and available 
for public inspection in the office of the Director of 
the National Park Service, Department of the Inte-
rior. 
(2) TREATMENT.—The map and boundary de-
scription prepared under paragraph (1) shall have 
the same force and effect as if included in this Act. 
The Secretary of the Interior may correct clerical 
and typographical errors in the map and description. 
(c) POTENTIAL WILDERNESS LANDS.—
(1) DEFINITION.—In this section, the term 
‘‘potential wilderness lands’’ means—
(A) lands identified as potential wilderness 
on the map referred to in subsection (a); and 
(B) lands and interests therein acquired by 
the United States on or after the date of the 
enactment of this Act that are located within 
the boundaries of the Rocky Mountain National 
Park and are contiguous with lands designated 
as wilderness by this Act. 
(2) INCLUSION IN WILDERNESS.—Upon publi-
cation in the Federal Register of a notice by the 
Secretary of the Interior that all uses of a parcel of 
potential wilderness lands inconsistent with the Wil-
derness Act have ceased, the parcel shall be included 
in the Rocky Mountain National Park Wilderness 
designated by subsection (a) and managed as pro-
vided in section 3. The Secretary of the Interior 
shall modify the map and boundary description pre-
pared under subsection (b) to reflect the inclusion of 
the parcel in the Rocky Mountain National Park 
Wilderness. 
(d) EXCLUSION OF CERTAIN LANDS.—The bound-
aries of the Rocky Mountain National Park Wilderness 
and the potential wilderness lands specifically exclude the 
following: 
(1) The Grand Ditch (including both the main 
canal of the Grand Ditch and a branch thereof 
known as the specimen Ditch) and its right-of-way 
as well as associated appurtenances, structures, 
buildings, camps, and work sites in existence as of 
June 1, 1998. 
(2) Lands owned by the St. Vrain & Left Hand 
Water Conservancy District, including Copeland 
Reservoir and the Inlet Ditch to such reservoir from 
the North St. Vrain Creek, amounting to approxi-
mately 35.38 acres. 
(3) Lands owned by the Wincentsen-Harms 
Trust, amounting to approximately 2.75 acres.
(e) RELATION TO LANDS OUTSIDE WILDERNESS.—
Nothing in this Act shall affect the management or use 
of any lands not included within the boundaries of the 
Rocky Mountain National Park Wilderness or the poten-
tial wilderness lands. 
SEC. 3. MANAGEMENT OF ROCKY MOUNTAIN NATIONAL 
PARK WILDERNESS. 
(a) MANAGEMENT GENERALLY.—Subject to valid ex-
isting rights, lands designated as wilderness by section 
2(a) or subsequently included in the Rocky Mountain Na-
tional Park Wilderness by section 2(c) shall be managed 
by the Secretary of the Interior in accordance with the 
Wilderness Act (16 U.S.C. 1131 et seq.) and this Act. 
With respect to the lands designated as wilderness by sec-
tion 2(a), any reference in the Wilderness Act to the effec-
tive date of the Wilderness Act shall be deemed to be a 
reference to the date of the enactment of this Act. With 
respect to the lands subsequently included in the Rocky 
Mountain National Park Wilderness by section 2(c), any 
reference in the Wilderness Act to the effective date of 
the Wilderness Act shall be deemed to be a reference to 
the date on which the lands were included in the wilder-
ness area.
(b) WATER RIGHTS.—
(1) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds the fol-
lowing: 
(A) According to decisions of the courts of 
the State of Colorado, the United States has ex-
isting rights to water within the Rocky Moun-
tain National Park. 
(B) Those rights are sufficient for the pur-
poses of the Rocky Mountain National Park 
Wilderness as designated by section 2. 
(C) In light of the findings in subpara-
graphs (A) and (B), there is no need for this 
Act to effect a reservation by the United States 
of any additional water rights to fulfill the pur-
poses for which the Rocky Mountain National 
Park Wilderness is designated. 
(2) NO RESERVATION.—Nothing in this Act or 
any action taken pursuant to this Act shall con-
stitute either an express or implied reservation of 
water or water rights for any purpose. 
(c) COLORADO-BIG THOMPSON PROJECT.—
(1) 
CURRENT
ACTIVITIES.—Activities 
on, 
under, or affecting the lands designated as wilder-
ness by section 2 relating to the monitoring, oper-
ation, maintenance, repair, replacement, and use of 
the Colorado-Big Thompson Project and its facilities
which were allowed as of June 1, 1998, shall be al-
lowed to continue and shall not be affected by the 
designation of the lands as wilderness. 
(2) NEW ACTIVITIES.—In addition to the activi-
ties described in paragraph (1), any other activities 
on, under, or affecting the lands designated as wil-
derness by section 2 that because of emergencies or 
catastrophic events become necessary for the oper-
ation, maintenance, repair, replacement, and con-
tinue use of the Colorado-Big Thompson Project and 
its facilities shall be allowed, subject only to reason-
able restrictions which are established by the Sec-
retary of the Interior to protect the wilderness val-
ues of the lands. In implementing this paragraph, 
the Secretary shall not establish any restrictions on 
the activities that would prevent the occurrence of 
such necessary activities or that would reduce the 
water supply provided by the Colorado-Big Thomp-
son Project or the Windy Gap Project. 
(3) RELATION TO AUTHORITY IN ACT ESTAB-
LISHING PARK.—Nothing in the first section of the 
Act of January 26, 1915 (16 U.S.C. 191), shall be 
construed to permit development within the lands 
designated as wilderness by section 2 of any rec-