A bipartisan team of lawmakers from Colorado and Utah are urging Congress to help safeguard the nation’s watersheds by considering a new bill aimed at expediting the cleanup of contamination caused by wildfires.
The Watershed Protection and Forest Recovery Act, co-sponsored by Sens. Michael Bennet (D-Colo.) and Mitt Romney (R-Utah), would accelerate watershed recovery efforts on federal land, while also protecting private property and water resources downstream.
Joining Bennet and Romney in supporting the legislation are Reps. Joe Neguse (D-Colo.), Yadira Caraveo (D-Colo.), Celeste Maloy (R-Utah) and John Curtis (R-Utah).
“We need to make it easier for local water managers and the U.S. Forest Service to collaborate to restore the health of our watersheds following a natural disaster,” Bennet said in a statement.
Watershed recoveries from recent major wildfires, such as Colorado’s 2021 East Troublesome and Cameron Peak fires, have faced major slowdowns because the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) existing Emergency Watershed Protection Program applies only to nonfederal lands, the lawmakers explained.