UPDATE Village at Wolf Creek - May 28, 2019 - Back to Court.

Here we go again, news from :

We filed suit on Tuesday to challenge the US Forest Service's approval to grant increased road access to the Village at Wolf Creek

As you may remember, last year, the Rio Grande National Forest Supervisor Dan Dallas signed a Final Record of Decision that provided expanded access across National Forest System lands to the private parcel created during the controversial 1986 land exchange. That private parcel, proposed home to the "Village" at Wolf Creek, is in the middle of a critical widllife corridor between two wilderness areas vital to threatened Canada lynx and home to rare fen wetlands and the headwaters of the Rio Grande.

The decision was based on the same environmental analysis that the late Judge Matsch deemed "an artful dodge" and ruled was arbitrary, capricious, and contrary to law on Endangered Species Day in 2017. In fact, Courts have repeatedly blocked attempts to fast track approvals and skimp on environmental analysis and public input.

We had called for the Forest Service to conduct a new environmental impact statement that fully considered the impact to species like the Canada lynx, but the Forest Service decided instead to give the developers increased road access. 

Well, on Tuesday, we, along with our partners, once again filed a lawsuit seeking to invalidate that Final Record of Decision.

To help fund further efforts to protect Wolf Creek Pass, please visit our donation webpage and select "Friends of Wolf Creek" under "Direct My Donation."

For the wild!

Chris Talbot-Heindl

For more information about the battle to keep Wolf Creek Pass wild, visit the Friends of Wolf Creek website

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PRESS RELEASE: Conservation Groups Challenge Forest Service Again Over Approval of Village at Wolf Creek

Published by Chris Talbot-Heindl on May 28, 2019

http://www.friendsofwolfcreek.org/press-release-conservation-groups-challenge-forest-service-again-over-approval-of-village-at-wolf-creek/
     

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Conservation groups challenge road access for Village at Wolf Creek

Forest Service says environmental reviews sound

By Jonathan Romeo, County and environment reporter

Tuesday, May 28, 2019

https://durangoherald.com/articles/278902

A coalition of environmental groups Tuesday filed a challenge of the U.S. Forest Service’s approval last year to grant road access to the Village at Wolf Creek, a decision that ultimately paves the way for the proposed massive development atop Wolf Creek Pass.

“Once again, it falls to the public to demand protection of Wolf Creek Pass, a place long cherished by generations of visitors and residents alike,” said Jimbo Buickerood, lands program manager at San Juan Citizens Alliance, in a prepared statement. “Though the Forest Service might be inclined to renege on its stewardship responsibilities, we are ready to insist on compliance with the law and the public’s will.” …