Topic: Public Lands — Public Lands
Subject: Public lands and natural resources
Date: 2013-05-06 00:00:00

Hermosa Creek Watershed Protection Act of 2014 - (Sec. 4) Permits specified federal lands in San Juan National Forest in Colorado to be called the Hermosa Creek Watershed and Protection Area.

(Sec. 5) Designates certain federal lands in a proposed watershed protection area in San Juan National Forest to be administered by the Department of Agriculture (USDA) as the Hermosa Creek Special Management Area.

Authorizes in the Special Management Area, subject to conditions, specified activities including: (1) the use of motorized vehicles and snowmobiles, and (2) grazing and other traditional economic activities. Prohibits an area identified as East Hermosa Area from having unauthorized new road construction, renovations of existing nonsystem roads, or commercial timber harvests.

Requires any land interests acquired by the United States within the Special Management Area to occur only through donation or exchange with written consent of the property owner.

Declares that nothing in this Act affects: (1) Colorado's fish and wildlife jurisdiction, or (2) management of water storage reservoirs.

Withdraws federal land within the Special Management Area from: (1) entry, appropriation, or disposal under public land laws; (2) location, entry, and patent under mining laws; and (3) disposition under mineral leasing, geothermal leasing, or mineral materials laws.

Sets forth authority for the management of ski area permits, vegetation, wildfires, hazardous fuels, insects, and diseases in the Special Management Area.

Requires USDA, within three years after enactment of this Act, to develop a management plan for the long-term protection and management of the Special Management Area.

(Sec. 6) Prohibits designation of the Special Management Area from affecting water rights decreed under existing Colorado laws.

(Sec. 7) Designates certain San Juan National Forest land as a component of the National Wilderness Preservation System to be known as Hermosa Creek Wilderness.

(Sec. 8) Withdraws federal land and mineral interests depicted on a map entitled "Perins Peak & Animas City Mountain, Horse Gulch and Lake Nighthorse Mineral Withdrawal" from certain acts under public land, mining, mineral, and geothermal laws. Permits USDA to convey that land to the city of Durango, the county of La Plata, or the state of Colorado pursuant to the Recreation and Public Purposes Act or by a legal exchange.

(Sec. 9) Directs the Department of the Interior, upon the expiration of a specified permit and upon the request and agreement of La Plata, to convey to La Plata identified land managed by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) in the Tres Rios District in Colorado.

Directs Interior to require La Plata to pay administrative costs associated with such conveyance.

(Sec. 10) Designates certain San Juan County land as the Molas Pass Recreation Area. Authorizes snowmobiles in the area under specified conditions and requires USDA to authorize mountain biking and other recreational uses.

Designates as a component of the National Wilderness Preservation System certain San Juan National Forest land depicted as "Weminuche Wilderness Addition" on a map entitled "West Needles Contiguous Wilderness Study Area." Transfers administrative jurisdiction of that land from the BLM to the Forest Service.

(Sec. 11) Declares that nothing in this Act restricts low-level overflights of military aircraft, flight testing and evaluation, special use airspace, or military flight training routes over wilderness areas.