Reflecting on ten years of conservation in the West
Colorado College celebrates a decade of the State of the Rockies Project’s Conservation in the West Poll
This year, Colorado College’s State of the Rockies Project celebrated the tenth anniversary of its Conservation in the West Poll, which has become a benchmark for assessing Western attitudes towards conservation and public lands throughout the past decade. The poll shows clearly that voters in the West care deeply about clean air and water, wildlife, and public lands; these voters prioritize public lands protection and expect the same values from their elected officials. Westerners have a lot in common across state and party lines, including increasing concern about climate change, disapproval of the Trump administration’s attacks on public lands, and a desire to vote for pro-conservation candidates.
The Conservation in the West Poll began in five states in 2011, and has since then expanded to include eight states across the Mountain West (Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming). The poll is conducted by a bipartisan team of pollsters, Lori Weigel of New Bridge Strategies and Dave Metz of Fairbank, Maslin, Maullin, & Metz (FM3). To celebrate a decade of this important poll, Colorado College hosted a symposium in February to reflect on how attitudes have shifted since the first survey and discuss the future of conservation and public lands. The event featured Montana Governor Steve Bullock and New Mexico Senator Tom Udall, as well as a panel of experts on conservation and public lands, including Collin O’Mara, President and CEO of the National Wildlife Foundation; Jennifer Rokala, Executive Director of the Center for Western Priorities; Len Necefer, professor of American Indian Studies at University of Arizona and founder of Natives Outdoors; and Maite Arce, President and CEO of the Hispanic Access Foundation.
Western voters have a lot in common, across state and party lines
The Conservation in the West Poll reminds us of what we have in common. It shows that public land and conservation issues are a rare bipartisan point of agreement. In his opening keynote, Governor Bullock stated:
“Unlike any other place in the country, I think folks out West really do have a special appreciation for our public lands. We know that our public lands are our heritage, they’re our birthright, they’re our great equalizer, meaning it doesn’t matter the size of your checkbook or who your parents were or where you’re from, our public lands and access to them are for everyone.”
The Land and Water Conservation Fund is an example of bipartisan agreement. The program, which was permanently reauthorized in 2019 by a 92–8 vote in the Senate, uses royalties from offshore oil and gas drilling to fund conservation projects throughout the country. Republicans, Independents, and Democrats alike support fully funding this program. Maite Arce emphasized the importance of this program at the symposium:
“The permanent reauthorization of the LWCF was really critical because it has provided resources ot our parks and waterways in all fifty states and in so many communities including mine growing up.”
The poll also asked voters whether they would support establishing a national goal of protecting 30 percent of America’s lands and waters by 2030. 3 in 4 voters support this bold conservation goal, with 1 in 2 saying that they strongly support it. In response, Dave Metz said,
“This another one of those [issues] that cut across partisan lines, which obviously is rare in today’s politics. We had majorities of Republicans, Independents, and Democrats all telling us that they would support this conservation goal. And I think that’s really a telling number when you think about the degree to which Western states include large amounts of federal public lands and some of those issues at times have been contentious… But at the level of voters, there really does seem to be broad consensus in favor of setting ambitious targets for conserving those public lands and oceans.”
Concern about climate change is intensifying
Both the poll and the symposium emphasized looking back at the past decade of conservation, and that includes reflecting on how attitudes and concern about climate change have shifted in the last ten years since the poll started. Lori Weigel stated:
“One of the real benefits of this survey is that we’ve been able to ask people about various issues over the last ten years… and while we haven’t tracked every single question, we made a concerted effort this year to kind of go back in the archive, look at some of the things we asked in the very first year in 2011, and assess how people are responding. One of the biggest areas of change, which obviously tends to stand out, is just where climate change is. It went from really not being top of mind at all when we asked people in 2011 to tell us the most important environmental problem or issues, to being tied as number one.”
Since 2011, the percentage of Western voters that view climate change as the most important environmental issue has risen from 5 percent to 32 percent. Across party lines, climate change remains a priority, ranking as one of the top three environmental issues for Republicans, Independents, and Democrats alike. Concern about the impacts of climate change is translating into voting. During the panel, Collin O’Mara discussed the shift in public perception of climate change:
“I think the roadmap for climate is very similar to the roadmap for public lands. You make it hyperlocal… the abstract — polar bears and puffins — did not get the job done as the messaging. When you’re talking about fires in your backyard, that trout stream that’s warming and screwing up the spawning rates, the droughts, things that affect backyards, things that affect the dinner table, all of a sudden it becomes real and becomes a shared value. I think we’re going to see the same evolution on climate that we did see on public lands where you frankly can’t win if you are on the wrong side of this issue over time.”
The Trump administration’s attacks on public lands are unpopular in the West
Western voters overwhelmingly disagree with policy rollbacks instituted by the Trump administration. From weakening the Endangered Species Act to removing protections under the Clean Water Act, the majority of voters across political parties disagree with these actions.
Voters also believe that companies that operate on public lands need to fairly compensate taxpayers and should be held responsible for damage inflicted on the land and nearby communities. 70 percent agree that companies should not profit from public lands when it limits the public’s enjoyment of an area. 69 percent support increasing royalties for oil and gas development, and 84 percent want mining companies to pay a fee for operations on public lands.
In every state except Wyoming, a majority of voters transitioning to 100 percent renewable energy. During the panel discussion, Jennifer Rokala discussed diversifying rural economies:
“A number of states… have created offices of outdoor recreation to help bring the outdoor rec economy to communities throughout the West, but also make sure the impact is not hurting our public lands but enhancing [them], growing the economy… so that businesses are relocating to communities that might be losing tradition energy [jobs]and creating an outdoor recreation economy that is a clean economy.”
Westerners are voting for conservation and climate change
In the West, conservation is a winning issue for candidates, from local to national races. Dave Metz discussed the importance of these issues, particularly this year.
“Obviously this is an election year, so issues relating land, water, and wildlife are not just important in their own right but in terms of who we’re going to elect to handle these issues over the course of the next few years. And in this year’s poll we saw a dramatic increase in the importance of these issues to voters compared to what we’ve seen in past election cycles. And I think that speaks to the degree of interest that people have had as, at least at the federal level, we’ve taken a radically different direction in terms of protections for land, water, and wildlife with the new administration that’s been in place since 2016.”
Increasingly, conservation issues are becoming a primary factor in voters’ choices. In just the past four years, there has been a 13 percent increase in votes who say that issues of clean water and air, wildlife, and public lands are a primary factor in their voting decisions. For key groups of swing voters in the West, conservation issues are a significant factor in their decision making, which often decides the results of elections. Once elected, a majority of Western voters expect their representatives to prioritize conservation and protection over maximizing energy development on public lands.
The future of conservation
The anniversary of the poll served as an opportunity to assess the wins and losses of the past decade and reevaluate what’s needed going forward. Over the past ten years, there have been successes, including increasing awareness about the impacts of climate change, protection of millions of acres of public land, and an increasing awareness about the importance of involving local communities in the management of public lands and listening to diverse voices in the conservation movement. However, the Trump administration poses an existential threat to public lands, clean air and water, and the communities that rely on them. Len Necefer reflected on steps that were taken, as well as significant progress that still must be made, particularly in relation to tribal consultation and public land:
“In the Obama Administration, there were some strides made towards meaningful consultation of federal agencies and actions that happened on public lands. Unfortunately, it was incomplete. You know, one of the things that I like to say that could improve is uniformity across agencies. Making sure that these processes of how tribes are consulted in the process of federal decisionmaking is consistent. Also, accountability for federal agencies. That’s been one of the pitfalls of the process; in many cases in this administration, if tribes are sent an email about a particular decision, that’s considered consultation. And the last [part] is also ensuring that tribes’ voices have a meaningful influence on the decisions that are made.”
In his closing remarks, Senator Tom Udall expressed hope for the future and a call to action:
“The crisis of nature and the crisis of climate change have risen to a crescendo and the public is ready for action. We must write a new playbook to save our planet and our way of life. Here’s the good news, I’m here to tell you we can do it. The West has changed immensely since my dad’s era, our economies have grown and diversified, our cities have skylines, and we have become much more diverse. The West has evolved and we’ve moved forward, and so has public opinion, especially on environmental issues. The people are demanding action and that’s why I’m confident we can meet the challenges before us.”
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