Latino Conservation Group Urges Protection for Dolores River Canyon Watershed

McPhee Reservoir has released almost no water into the lower Dolores River during 14 of the last 24 years, leaving stretches of streambed effectively dry and riparian habitat under mounting stress. HECHO, a Latino-led conservation advocacy organization, is calling on Congress to protect the broader watershed before conditions deteriorate further.

HECHO, which stands for Hispanics Enjoying Camping, Hunting, and the Outdoors, published a blog post and advocacy video making the case for permanent protection of the Dolores River Canyon Watershed. Daniela Zavala authored the video, released August 27, 2024, underscoring the canyon's cultural richness and its foundational role in the Colorado River system.

The proposed Dolores River National Conservation Area would protect more than 68,000 acres of public land across a 70-mile corridor spanning Dolores, Montezuma, San Miguel, Montrose, and Mesa counties. That's more than double the 28,539 acres covered by the existing Dolores River Canyon Wilderness Study Area, and advocates describe the broader area as Colorado's largest and most biodiverse stretch of unprotected public lands.

The water picture shows why that designation matters. Between 1906 and 1995, average unimpaired discharge near the Dolores River's confluence with the Colorado measured 841,000 acre-feet annually. McPhee, completed in 1986, now regulates flows below Dolores, but climate-driven drought has compounded already diminished releases, further depleting reservoir levels and threatening the riparian ecosystems that depend on consistent flows.

The canyon also faces threats from above ground. The 70-mile Uravan mineral belt, which runs near the canyon through Montrose and surrounding counties, has drawn renewed interest in uranium and vanadium extraction. The region's mining history stretches to the late 19th century: it once supplied radium for Marie Curie's research and vanadium for the Manhattan Project. Today, radioactive runoff from legacy mines and newly proposed mining projects add pressure to a watershed already stressed by drought and increasing recreation demand.

The legislative push to protect the corridor has been building for nearly two decades. Senator Michael Bennet first introduced the Dolores River National Conservation Area and Special Management Area Act in July 2022, with Senator John Hickenlooper co-sponsoring. The bill was reintroduced as S.1787 on May 15, 2025, timed to coincide with Colorado Public Lands Day, and passed the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee unanimously on December 17, 2025. Dolores County Board of County Commissioners Chairman Steve Garchar called the effort "the result of a long-standing collaborative effort." San Miguel County Commissioner Lance Warring echoed that history, noting that his county has been in discussions with Dolores and Montezuma Counties, the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe, and other regional stakeholders for over a decade.

HECHO, formed in 2013 and fiscally sponsored by the National Wildlife Federation, works through its Hispanic Conservation Leadership Council to expand the political coalition supporting permanent protection. The canyon's record makes that case concrete: humans have lived in the region for more than 10,000 years, the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe holds deep ancestral ties to the corridor, and Mesozoic sedimentary layers hold marine and dinosaur fossils alongside rare native fish and critical big-game migration routes. A 2024 conservation poll found a majority of Coloradans support permanent protection as the bill awaits a full Senate vote.