Mountains to Mesas (M2m)

• Mountains to Mesas, an alternative management proposal based on principles of conservation biology, is a joint project with High Country Citizens Alliance, Western Slope Environmental Resource Council and Sheep Mountain Alliance.
• Background Information

Recent Updates

On March 15, 2007, the US Forest Service released its long-awaited draft revised Forest Plan for the 3.2 million-acre Grand Mesa-Uncompahgre-Gunnison (GMUG) National Forest. A draft of the revised Forest Plan - a document that will guide the management of the Forest for the next 15 years - had been delayed for months.

However, just fifteen days later, U.S. District Court Judge Phyllis Hamilton in California ruled that the Bush Administration violated several laws (including the National Environmental Policy Act and the Endangered Species Act) in promulgating its 2005 forest planning regulations. 

The Judge enjoined the Forest Service from implementing or using the 2005 Rule until it complies with the existing federal law.  This means that the draft proposed GMUG Forest Plan is going to be thrown out.

Background Information

• Mountains to Mesas (M2m) is management alternative based on the principles of conservation biology for the Grand Mesa, Uncompahgre and Gunnison National Forests (GMUG).

• The GMUG stretches over three million acres across west-central Colorado, with life zones ranging from mid-elevation sagebrush to mountain-top tundra.

• The GMUG is undergoing a Forest Plan revision that will establish the philosophy for managing those acres for the next 15 years.

• At the heart of M2m is the idea of core reserves - large core wild areas - interconnected by habitat that allows for species dispersal and migration.

• M2m encourages human uses that are consistent with conservation of native biodiversity. Resource extraction on the GMUG in the past has often exceeded carrying capacity of the land, with numerous damaging effects such as soil erosion and polluted aquatic systems.

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What You Can Do

Visit the Mountains to Mesas website.

Contact Amy at (970) 256-7650 to learn more about WCC or to request your copy of "A Naturalist's View of Forest Health in Colorado."