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Committee approves $943,700 fee-title purchase for Eagle Butte State Wildlife Area
Summary
The Capital Development Committee approved a $943,700 fee-title acquisition of 632 acres in Weld County to create the Eagle Butte State Wildlife Area using compensatory mitigation fees collected under Senate Bill 19-181; the purchase passed unanimously 6-0.
The Capital Development Committee voted to approve the Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) proposal to acquire 632 acres northeast of Grover in Weld County for the Eagle Butte State Wildlife Area.
Daphne Gervais, director of legislative affairs for the Department of Natural Resources, told the committee the project is one of the first fee-title acquisitions funded by compensatory mitigation fees collected under Senate Bill 19-181. Gervais said CPW collects voluntary fees from oil-and-gas operators who choose not to undertake mitigation directly; CPW pools those funds to conserve high-priority habitat near approved energy development.
CPW Northeast Region Manager Mark Leslie described the parcel’s importance for mule deer, pronghorn and golden eagles and noted the tract adjoins other conserved lands, increasing its ecological value. Leslie and Gervais said the management plan is still being developed but could allow seasonal access for youth, veterans and hunters with disabilities, and could accommodate carefully managed cattle grazing.
Senator Pelton and Representative Winter voiced constituent concerns about the state buying land and “taking land out of production,” with Pelton saying he would vote yes if the project is voluntary but did not want to be seen as endorsing land taken from production. Gervais reiterated that the funding source is a pool of voluntary compensatory mitigation fees and that the parcel was identified as high priority for mitigation in the same data analysis unit affected by nearby oil-and-gas approvals.
A committee member moved to accept the fee-title acquisition at $943,700 for 632 acres; Miss Forbes polled the committee and the motion passed unanimously, 6 to 0.
