The Road to 30: State Parks

This is the first installment in a series exploring the importance of protecting 30 percent of America’s lands and waters by 2030, and the ways land can be conserved to reach this bold conservation goal.

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Across America, natural areas that we rely on for clean air and water, biodiversity, outdoor recreation, and local economies are disappearing. From habitat fragmentation to the widespread impacts of climate change, lands and waters throughout the country are being lost to development and degradation every day. To combat this crisis, scientists are urging that we must conserve 30 percent of America’s lands and waters by 2030.

There is not just one path to conservation. Finding diverse and innovative ways to protect landscapes that support local communities and preserve the land’s specific values will be critical in achieving the “30x30” goal. Currently, about 12 percent of American lands are protected. While we still have a ways to go, strong leadership and grassroots momentum are bringing us closer to the goal. In this series, we will explore some of the protected places on the road to conserving 30 percent of America, celebrating past conservation efforts and considering how to move forward to protect our lands, waters, wildlife, and the communities that rely on them.

State Parks

While 30x30 is an overarching objective, reaching it will require grassroots efforts and local involvement in planning and management. State parks are a prime example of locally-led conservation efforts.

Throughout the United States, there are 8,565 state parks that host over 800 million visitors annually. Unlike national parks or wilderness areas, state parks are often closer to population centers, offering convenient opportunities for families to get outside.

Fisher’s Peak State Park, Colorado

Fisher’s Peak State Park — Colorado’s newest park, set to open in 2021 — is a model of local partnership and collaboration, established in a way that will not only support conservation but benefit all stakeholders in the region. The park is located near the city of Trinidad, close to the New Mexico border. It will be Colorado’s second largest state park at 19,200 acres, and Fisher’s Peak, the mountain for which the park is named, is the highest point east of I-25 in the U.S. at 9,633 feet.

In 2019, the park was acquired through the combined efforts of The Nature Conservancy, the Trust for Public Land, Colorado Parks and Wildlife, and the city of Trinidad, in addition to help from Colorado’s Great Outdoors Colorado program, which funds conservation and recreation projects with a portion of lottery revenue.

Combined with protected areas it connects to in New Mexico, the addition of this park creates 55 square miles of conserved open space. The habitat is vital for a wide variety of wildlife. A comprehensive wildlife inventory is in process, but 850 species have already been identified on the property.

The park will feature hiking, biking, hunting, angling, rock climbing, as well as wildlife viewing, and many other opportunities for families to spend time outdoors. Not only will the new outdoor recreation opportunities provide increased access to residents nearby, but it will also boost the outdoor recreation economy in the area. In Colorado, outdoor recreation creates $37 billion in consumer spending and over 500,000 direct jobs annually. In a state where 92% of residents recreate outside and millions of visitors come each year to ski, hike, and raft, this new park will be a significant and sustainable economic driver for the region. Beyond the economic benefits, Fisher’s Peak State Park will allow the surrounding community to access and explore their home. Trinidad mayor Phil Rico stated, “It’s the backdrop to our community. We’ve always felt like we owned it, in a sense, but we’ve just never been able to access it.”

When Fisher’s Peak State Park opens to the public in early 2021, its acreage will add to the total amount of protected land in the U.S., as well as supporting wildlife habitat, sustainable economic development, and recreation access in southeastern Colorado communities, bringing us one step closer to protecting 30 percent of America by 2030.

Learn more through the interactive storymap.

For more information, visit westernpriorities.org. To learn more about the 30x30 goal and to participate in discussions about this bold vision, visit RoadTo30.org. Sign up for Look West to get daily public lands and energy news sent to your inbox, or subscribe to Go West, Young Podcast.”