The Roan Plateau

After a long fight, the Bureau of Land Management decided to conserve the Roan Plateau. This will prevent most of the plateau’s top from oil and gas development.

The Roan Plateau announcement in 2016 is the conclusion of a decision by the Bush administration to allow thousands of wells on top of the plateau. Conservation groups, industry, and the government reached a settlement after years of legal dispute and controversy.

Under the settlement, the BLM will cancel most of the oil and gas leases on the ecologically sensitive top of the Roan Plateau. The BLM will consider a management plan that would allow for limited development on remaining leases, ban new leasing on top of the plateau, and conserve big game habitat at the base.

“We have long said that some areas in Colorado are too wild to drill, the Roan Plateau is certainly one of those places. Thanks to leaders like Governor Hickenlooper and U.S. Senators Udall and Bennet, and Representative Tipton, Coloradans will have a greater opportunity to experience and enjoy the Roan Plateau’s trout filled streams, elk and mule deer herds and dramatic waterfalls and soaring scenic vistas.”

— Pete Maysmith, Executive Director, Conservation Colorado

Blog Posts

The Importance of Roan

Media

Colorado Public Lands Decisions are Wins for Conservation

BLM Plan Would Limit Drilling on Roan Plateau – The Denver Post

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