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Photo Courtesy Marathon Oil |
Energy companies
give back to the earth
in Colorado
Big oil contributes big time
to conservation efforts
Marathon Oil, a company among the world's leading integrated energy companies, is known for its gas stations that dot the country. But now it is staking its claim among conservationists in a large-scale watershed restoration project that benefits numerous wildlife species in Fremont and Chaffee counties of Colorado. Located on Bureau of Land Management and State Land Board properties, this 800-plus-acre project not only provides better habitat for large and small game, but also clean water for aquatic inhabitants.
Marathon is one of more than a dozen partners raising money and lending manpower for the benefit of Colorado's wildlife.
The Colorado Division of Wildlife holds annual deer and elk license auctions (statewide licenses), and some of the proceeds are earmarked for the project — almost $250,000 in funding.
Project goals include increased wintering forage for elk and mule deer and nesting and brood rearing cover for wild turkeys. (Spring and fall turkey hunting in the area is by over-the-counter permits.) It also aims to reduce soil erosion and runoff into the Arkansas River watershed, which is important for brown trout spawning areas in a creek near the project area.
BLM land and Sand Gulch State Trust land properties are open to hunting and fishing. Fremont Co. Rd. 45, north of Howard, provides the best access to the treatment area. BLM land along the river also can be accessed from U.S. Hwy. 50 and Fremont Co. Rd. 45.
Williams Production RMT sows seeds of success in reclamation efforts
Williams Production RMT is required by federal and state governments to reclaim land after exploring for and creating access to natural gas. The company, headquartered in Tulsa, Okla., received an award from Colorado in 2009 for reclamation excellence following the installation of a pipeline gathering line in Parachute Creek Valley.
Rob Raley, environmental specialist for Williams Production, believes there has been a payoff from replanting grasses, forbs and other vegetation that not only appeals to wild turkeys, but also to the abundance of big game in the nearby high country.
According to Donna Gray, community relations at Williams, a flock of about 60 wild turkeys lives along Parachute Creek and frequents the area around its natural gas processing plant and compressor stations. She calls them the "poster turkeys" that show how reclamation efforts pay off.
Williams Production works with the Colorado Division of Wildlife and the Bureau of Land Management to perform the reclamation, which includes sowing native plant seed.
BLM's Colorado River Valley Field Office is in Silt, Colo., where they offer over-the-counter permits are to resident and non-resident hunters in the spring. The area also has the largest mule deer population in the region. Gold Medal trout fishing abounds nearby.
NWTF Energy for Wildlife Biologist Loran Brinkmeier said, "We look forward to working with Williams on future wildlife habitat projects in Colorado. Stay tuned!" — Barbara Baird