Colorado PLC is the leader in public lands grazing advocacy.

From writing comments on all issues related to public lands and wildlife to communicating directly with Colorado permittees on specific permit-related issues, we strive to be the conduit for information and go-to problem-solvers in the state.  

The Colorado Public Lands Council (CPLC) is comprised of three cattle permittees including Al Heaton, Chase Roeber and Robbie LeValley, and Ernie Etchart as our sole sheep permittee. We receive significant assistance and support from both the Colorado Cattlemen’s Association (CCA) and the Colorado Wool Growers Association, which are led by Erin Karney and Bonnie Brown. We take a full-industry approach to representation of federal grazing permittees and believe it’s incredibly important to ensure that CPLC’s work is representative of all Colorado permittees. We also focus on ensuring permittees have the tools they need to be in the best possible position with the agencies. We continuously remind all public land permittees that CCA and CPLC have secured an updated Cooperative Monitoring MOU with the U.S. Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management, which requires that rangeland monitoring collected by permittees must be accepted by the two agencies. This year, we’ve also fielded numerous questions regarding the BLM Conservation Leasing and Land Health Rulemaking, as well as partnered with the Colorado Department of Agriculture to add substantive comments to numerous agency NEPA documents.  

It’s no secret Colorado is a huge destination for anyone who loves the outdoors.

CPLC hosted a field trip with USFS Region 2 leadership to evaluate the recreational impacts on grazing allotments and to emphasize that livestock grazing cannot continue to be the mitigation tool for landscape impacts. During this trip, there were increased commitments made by USFS to CPLC that there would be thorough communication when recreational tools are implemented across the state, as well as to meet at least twice a year to understand ongoing issues and the impacts the grazing has on public lands. There was also a statement made by the Fish and Wildlife Service that livestock grazing is not a hindrance to sage grouse. This affirmation by a public agency shows that the work CPLC does is effective and has an impact on federal agencies within the state. 

Additionally, CPLC held two in person meetings with the Colorado BLM state office leadership team to discuss specific allotment and policy issues including landscape health, bighorn and domestic sheep, rangeland conflicts, monitoring messaging and staffing.   

CPLC partners with CCA to fund legal representation on the USFWS 10(j) rulemaking process and developed comments for members to use, modify, and submit. Colorado PLC sits on the Colorado State University Ag Next Committee, which helps secure research dollars to evaluate carbon storage and active grazing landscapes. The information secured through this effort has been used by several public land agencies to address climate change.