For years, Colorado TU and our Grand Valley Anglers chapter have been working to protect and enhance habitat for native cutthroat trout atop the Roan Plateau. From involvement in a legal challenge against a BLM oil and gas leasing plan that lacked adequate protections for watersheds, to volunteer work days with fencing and riparian restoration - from water quality monitoring and securing "outstanding water" protections, to construction of a fish barrier to secure native trout habitat from invasion by non-native brookies - TU has been, and continues to be, hard at work in protecting this unique place within Colorado. As part of a four-part series on some of Colorado's best wild lands and efforts to conserve them, Scott Willoughby of the Denver Post recently took notice of the efforts by TU and our partners on the Roan. TU's Corey Fisher noted some of the challenges: "Our Grand Valley chapter out of Grand Junction has been working on stream restoration projects up there for over 15 years, so our engagement up there in fisheries conservation goes back long before the oil and gas issue really got going on the Roan. But those leases and areas that could be developed theoretically could cover the entire top of the plateau, including all the trout streams up there."
Read Scott Willoughby's full Sunday feature on the Roan here.
