President Obama Designates Browns Canyon National Monument - Colorado
Salida, CO – On February 19th, President Obama used his authority under the US Antiquities
Act to protect over 21,000 acres of public lands surrounding Colorado’s Browns Canyon of
the Arkansas River. American Whitewater and community leaders applaud the news that President
Obama plans to designate the Browns Canyon National Monument on Thursday.
“We thank President Obama for acting today, and honoring the decades of work so many of
Coloradoans have invested to protect Browns Canyon”, said Nathan Fey, Regional Director at
American Whitewater. “If it were up to Coloradoans we would have protected Browns Canyon
years ago, so we should all be proud that the president has acted when congress
couldn’t”
Recent polling from the Colorado College showed that 96% of Coloradans support the protection and
conservation of natural areas. Along with American Whitewater and our members, local groups and
businesses have supported the national monument designation for Browns Canyon, including the
Colorado and Arkansas River Outfitters Associations, Chaffee County Visitors Bureau, the Salida
Business Alliance, sportsmen, youth, faith, veterans and Hispanic groups, and county
commissioners. .
Browns Canyon is the most popular whitewater rafting destination in the country. According to the
Colorado River Outfitters Association (CROA), commercial rafting on the Arkansas River which runs
through Browns Canyon brings in roughly $60 million to the economy. The stretch of the Arkansas
River that runs through Browns Canyon was awarded “Gold Medal” status for having the
highest quality cold-water fish habitats accessible to the public and great potential for trophy
trout fishing.
The president is using his authority under the Antiquities Act to protect Browns Canyon and two
other new national monuments in Illinois and Hawaii this week. The Antiquities Act has been used
to protect other landscapes important to paddlers, like the Grand Canyon and Dinosaur National
Monument, but under the monument proposal introduced by former Senator Mark Udall, Browns Canyon
will not be managed by the National Parks Service and paddling will continue to be managed by the
Colorado State Parks as it is today. The president’s proclamation of Browns Canyon National
Monument honors the spirit of Udall’s legislation that followed a multi-year process of
input from local residents, paddlers, ranchers, and businesses.
Today, after years of work, you can join us in thanking
President Obama and Colorado's leaders, for Protecting Browns Canyon!
Stay tuned for more information on the Presidential Proclamation, which we anticipate will be
released at 6am EST, on Thursday February 19th.
Nathan Fey
1601 Longs Peak Ave.
Longmont, CO 80501