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President Biden today is expected to sign a proclamation creating the Camp Hale-Continental Divide National Monument in Colorado. According to a White House fact sheet, the monument will encompass more than 53,800 acres and will also include the Tenmile Range, a mountain range with stunning views that is prized by hikers and rock climbers. In addition to the monument designation, Biden is expected to initiate a temporary withdrawal of 225,000 acres in the nearby Thompson Divide from potential new mining or drilling. Biden's action will kickstart an environmental analysis and public comment process that will be conducted by the Interior Department and the U.S. Forest Service on prohibiting energy development in the area for 20 years.
During World War II, Camp Hale housed up to 17,000 troops in the U.S. Army's 10th Mountain Division. At an elevation of 9,200 feet, the site was ideal for training in skiing, snowshoeing, and rock climbing, skills that helped the soldiers fight Axis forces in Italy. After the war, some of the same soldiers who toiled at what they called “Camp Hell” returned to the region to help launch Colorado’s booming ski industry. The area now provides critical habitat for wildlife, including elk, deer, lynx, and migratory songbirds.
The designation will mark the first time the president has used his authority under the Antiquities Act to create a new national monument. Last fall Biden restored protections for Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante national monuments in Utah. The Center for Western Priorities Deputy Director Aaron Weiss praised the designation, saying, “This designation shows that President Biden is thinking about his conservation legacy, not just restoring the damage of the Trump years but laying the groundwork for his own legacy going forward. It is our hope that Camp Hale-Continental Divide is the first of many national monuments that the president protects.”
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Co-management can take all kinds of forms, from substantive, meaningful, timely consultation with tribes all the way to Congress delegating authority to a tribe or tribes to jointly make decisions for a piece of land with Congress. The important thing is the actual work of meaningfully engaging tribes so that they have real influence.”
