This new collaborative body will guide the state’s response to current bark beetle outbreaks as well as long-term efforts to restore and sustain Colorado’s diverse forests.

Colorado Wild also worked to improve a number of forest-related bills in the State Legislature this spring. Our participation helped to ensure that the seven bills and three resolutions that passed addressing forest health and management do no harm and, in most cases, help promote our vision for stewardship of forested public lands in the state.

Finally, we continued to “walk the talk” when it comes to improved management of Colorado’s forests with the release of an assessment of fire mitigation needs for the ten county area most heavily affected by the mountain pine beetle outbreak in northern Colorado. Working with our partners at the Southern Rockies Ecosystem Project and other conservation organizations, we developed a GIS assessment of the lands which the conservation community believes may be appropriate for active management to reduce threats to people and infrastructure from Colorado’s bark beetle outbreak. We submitted this draft assessment with accompanying testimony at the U.S. Senate Appropriations Subcommittee’s bark beetle field hearing held in Eagle, CO in March 2008, and continue to use this report to push for an appropriate response to the bark beetle situation.

Together with other conservation partners, we’ve not only secured a seat at the table, but we’re actively working to shape the debate about the future of Colorado’s public forests.