The State of Colorado, local elected officials, and thousands of public comments highlight widespread opposition to parcels proposed in December oil and gas lease sale 

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 

November 10, 2026   

Contacts: 

Richard Mylott, richard@wildernessworkshop.org

Jim Ramey, The Wilderness Society, jramey@tws.org  

Brien Webster, Conservation Colorado, brien@conservationco.org 

 

RIFLE, Colo. — A broad coalition of western conservation organizations, local communities, and state agencies today marked the close of the Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) formal protest period on the December 2026 oil and gas lease sale by delivering a clear, united message: Colorado’s iconic Roan Plateau must remain protected from oil and gas development. The end of the protest period today reflects months of public outcry against the BLM’s proposal to sacrifice critical wildlife habitat and pristine watersheds on the plateau for oil and gas drilling. 

BLM’s proposal to lease the Roan Plateau has generated thousands of formal comments opposing the leases, including a groundswell of resistance that began during a 30-day public scoping period earlier this year. Over the past months, residents and advocates have spoken out against the inclusion of the Roan Plateau within a massive 126,744-acre leasing package. The intense opposition includes the State of Colorado and a broad range of residents, hunters, anglers, and outdoor recreationists who want to protect the integrity of this rich natural landscape.  

The State of Colorado’s protest of the lease parcels particularly emphasizes threats to state-designated Outstanding Waters in East Fork of Parachute Creek, a pristine watershed on top of the Roan Plateau. Outstanding Waters is Colorado’s highest tier of water quality protection under the State’s antidegradation rules. Well pads, roads, erosion, sedimentation, spills, altered drainage patterns, and wildlife disturbance from oil and gas development can impact large areas of watersheds. Last year, 338 oil and gas spills occurred in Colorado. 

East Fork Parachute Creek serves as a vital refuge for genetically pure Colorado River cutthroat trout. Conserving this resource has been a 10-year collaborative effort between BLM and Colorado Parks and Wildlife, resulting in a native trout population that ranks among the most resilient in the state. In comments to the BLM, Colorado Parks and Wildlife recommended that this unique trout population be protected from all potential threats, including oil and gas development. 

The proposed lease parcels also overlap directly with high-priority habitat for elk production and areas critical to supporting what was once North America’s largest herd of migratory mule deer, a population that is now in steep decline due to habitat fragmentation elsewhere.  

This latest BLM leasing proposal reopens years of intense conflict over the Roan Plateau, which had been put to rest. After all the federal lands on the plateau were leased for drilling in 2008, a historic 2014 legal settlement canceled dozens of controversial leases on top of the plateau and put significant development conditions on neighboring lands to protect critical environmental values. In 2024, the remaining two leases on top of the plateau were relinquished by the leaseholders after no development occurred. 

“We are calling on the BLM to listen to local communities and state wildlife experts and pull these parcels from the December sale.” said Juli Slivka, Senior Policy and Program Director for Wilderness Workshop. “With two million acres of shared public lands already leased for oil and gas across the state, it’s time we protect the remarkable landscapes we have left, including the unique biodiversity of the Roan Plateau.” 

“Wild country like the Roan is part of what makes Colorado special, and part of what makes us who we are as Coloradans. If the Roan is developed, we not only lose an important landscape and critical wildlife habitat, but an important part of our identity,” said Brien Webster, Senior Public Lands Campaign Manager for Conservation Colorado. “Coloradans have already made their judgment about this plateau – and they’ve spoken loud and clear – it is too important to drill. BLM should honor what Coloradans have asked for and pull these parcels from the December sale.

“The voices of residents, communities and state agencies over the last several months have been clear. Coloradans are ready, more than ever, to defend their freedom to enjoy their public lands and keep them protected for future generations,” said Jim Ramey, Colorado State Director for The Wilderness Society. “After decades of legal battles, community collaboration and extensive investments in habitat restoration, reopening this ecologically vital landscape to drilling is a step backward that Coloradans simply will not accept.” 

Formal opposition to the proposed lease parcels on top of the Roan Plateau has been expressed by conservation organizations across Colorado; hunting and angling organizations including Trout Unlimited, National Wildlife Federation and Backcountry Hunters and Anglers; the State of Colorado including the Department of Natural Resources and Colorado Parks and Wildlife; local elected officials representing Silt, New Castle, Glenwood Springs and Carbondale; the Colorado Native Plant Society; and a protest filed by 465 members of the public.   

The pushback against the December lease sale reflects overwhelming local opposition. A recent poll conducted by Magellan Strategies revealed that voters in Colorado’s Third Congressional District reject leasing on the Roan Plateau by a roughly 2-to-1 margin, while opposition surges to nearly 70% within communities closest to the plateau. Underscoring this local sentiment, the Town of Silt recently voted to support protecting the Roan Plateau from new leasing. 

The BLM’s controversial leasing proposal comes in the wake of an unprecedented surge in federal public land giveaways following the passage of the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” in 2025. Earlier lease sales in March and June of 2026 have included nearly 200,000 acres across Colorado’s West Slope.  

 

Please visit here for video B-Roll of the Roan Plateau. 

https://vimeo.com/1245155345?share=copy&fl=sv&fe=ci  

Password: “RoanBroll”  

Credit: Cody Perry, Rig to Flip