Page 71 - Agenda 21

Page 71 of 121

“The Park Service allocates funds to a local group designated as a managing body composed of local
government officials and environmental groups who in turn set up non-elected boards, councils and
regional coordinating agencies to oversee land use in the heritage area via specific planning and
zoning. The managing group, once entrenched in the area, receives operating funds from the Park
Service to direct all business to be conducted in a way that they do not consider harmful to the
heritage area. Property owners and businessmen are never consulted or given a voice in these non-
elected managing bodies.

National Heritage Area Act of 2012, sponsored by Rep. Charles Dent (R-PA15) is the proposed HR
4099 that would grant open-ended powers to local management bodies, empowering them to regulate
human activities inside the heritage area, with the potential to affect the lives of millions of Americans
without public debate. The management body would operate in the best interest of their organization,
disregarding the interests of the property owners in the heritage area.”
http://www.canadafreepress.com/index.php/article/51160

23. AGENDA 21 DIRECTLY IMPACTING DELTA COUNTY

THE ROADLESS AREA CONSERVATION RULE

How is AGENDA 21 diminishing liberties in this region of Colorado?

Miners and loggers are increasingly being prohibited from public land due to United Nations Earth
Charter AGENDA 21 types of policies. ArchCoal’s West Elk Mine in Somerset, Colorado was finally
allowed access in August 2012 to their leases to the coal underlying the Sunset Roadless Area, having
been prohibited due to the U.S. Forest Service 2001 Roadless Area Conservation Rule.
http://archcoal.com/aboutus/westelk.aspx
http://www.fs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/stelprdb5365954.pdf

Pictured here: The Somerset, Colorado West Elk Coal
Operation

The Colorado Roadless Rule finalized on July 2, 2012
now overrides the federal rule so that West Elk’s
directional drilling access to their leases is now restored.
http://www.gjsentinel.com/news/articles/fork-in-the-roadless-will-colorado-use-federal-or

They have been opposed aggressively by the Colorado Environmental Coalition, the Wilderness
Society, the Wilderness Workshop, Earth Justice, Colorado Representative Diana DeGette, Colorado
Wild, the Sierra Club, the Obama administration and the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals. Read more
about that opposition and the “Colorado Deserves More” campaign at
http://coloradoindependent.com/89160/roadless-rule-campaign-targets-exemptions-for-logging-
drilling-mining

Environmentalist regulations and litigation are dramatically hindering mitigation of beetle infestation
of 6.6 million acres of forest in Colorado and Wyoming as well as clearing dead timber and brush
throughout federal land. “The so-called “roadless rule,” which was first implemented in 2001 by
President Clinton shortly before he left office, restricts and in many cases prohibits local and federal