I
107TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 1380
To designate as wilderness certain lands within the Rocky Mountain National
Park in the State of Colorado.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
APRIL 3, 2001
Mr. UDALL of Colorado (for himself and Ms. DEGETTE) 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-
lamation project not in existence as of the date of
the enactment of this Act.
(d) NO BUFFER ZONES.—Congress does not intend
that the designation by this Act of the Rocky Mountain
National Park Wilderness creates or implies the creation
of protective perimeters or buffer zones around the wilder-
ness area. The fact that nonwilderness activities or uses
can be seen or heard from within the wilderness area shall
not, of itself, preclude such activities or uses up to the
boundary of the wilderness area.
Æ