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October 4, 2007
Sportsmen for the Roan Plateau
Dear Fellow Sportsmen:
The Roan Plateau, a haven for fish and wildlife and a destination area for hunters and  anglers alike, is in the crosshairs of the energy industry. Fortunately, there are still opportunities for sportsmen to take the lead in safeguarding this special place for generations to come.
Decision-makers understand the power of the collective voice of sportsmen and they seek the support of hunters and anglers when they take positions on the Roan Plateau.
Sportsmen have long been conservation leaders in Colorado and the West. As hunters and anglers, we have the opportunity to step up and preserve our proud heritage. As an organized group of stakeholders, we can protect the Roan’s remarkable landscape, wildlife habitat and clear-flowing streams for tomorrow’s hunters and anglers.
Bringing hunters and anglers together to form a unified voice is critical if we are to achieve meaningful protection for the top and cliffs  of the Roan Plateau, along with the undeveloped land and wildlife habitat at its base. Sportsmen for the Roan Plateau will act as a coalition with hunting and fishing clubs, guides and outfitters, sportsmen’s organizations, and businesses that cater to sportsmen, who together will call for protection for this special part of Colorado’s backcountry.
With your endorsement we can show our elected leaders, both in Colorado and nationally, the widespread support for saving the Roan Plateau. Please help to protect this Colorado treasure.
To join Sportsmen for the Roan Plateau and endorse its protection, or for more information, please contact:
Bill Dvorak with the National Wildlife Federation at DvorakB@nwf.org or 719-221-3212
Why should sportsmen protect the Roan Plateau?
The Roan Plateau provides:
- Backcountry fishing for cutthroat and brook trout
- Elk and deer hunting away from the crowds
- Secure habitat for elk, deer, black bear and mountain lion
- Critical habitat for one of the largest mule deer herds in North America on surrounding land.
- Vital wintering range in the nearby PiceanceBasin and mid-elevation summer habitat for elk and deer essential for calving and fawning
- Genetically pure strains of native Colorado River cutthroat trout
Hunting and fishing are an integral part of western Colorado’s culture and economy. People live, visit and relocate to this area for wild places and open spaces, for hunting, fishing and recreation – not to see gas wells. Just the top of the Roan Plateau attracts around 1,500 hunters a year, bringing in nearly $5 million annually to the local economy. Thousands more spend millions hunting deer and elk on land around the base.
An Island in a Sea of Drilling
· The Bureau of Land Management has already leased 95 percent of the public land in the PiceanceBasin, key big-game winter habitat,
· Upwards of 50,000 new wells are projected in the PiceanceBasin over the next 15 years
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