The Daily - January 30, 2019 - 23

The Pulse

G A L L E R Y

Political
Commitment

Colorado Senator Bennet's CORE Act will
preserve the public lands our businesses
need in order to thrive. By Annelise Loevlie

CO U R T E SY I C E L A N T I C

THERE IS A REASON SO MANY

outdoor retailers choose to make
Colorado home, and why the
Outdoor Retailer Snow Show is in
Denver this week. Even more than
our state's spirit of entrepreneurship is our commitment to public
lands and access to the outdoors.
These values-and the shared
landscapes on which our businesses thrive-drive a $62 billion
outdoor recreation economy.
That's why I am thrilled that
Sen. Michael Bennet of Colorado,
along with with newly elected Rep.
Joe Neguse introduced the CORE
Act this week. The CORE Act, or
Colorado Outdoor Recreation and
Economy Act, would protect about
400,000 acres of public lands
and safeguard outdoor recreation
opportunities for the next generation. As the CEO of Icelantic
Skis-a homegrown Colorado
business-I am reassured to know
the CORE Act was crafted in close
coordination with local businesses,
counties, sportsmen, and conservationists to reflect our priorities.
At Icelantic Skis, we count on
Colorado's public lands to sustain
our culture, retain employees, and
drive sales. This would not be possible without leadership from our
elected officials on efforts like the
CORE Act to protect public lands.
The first element of the CORE
Act would protect nearly 100,000
acres of wilderness and recreation

areas in the White River National Forest along the Continental
Divide. This includes a recreation
management area in the Tenmile
Range. It also includes Camp Hale,
the birthplace of Colorado's ski
industry, which would become our
nation's first-ever National Historic Landscape. This is where the
storied World War II 10th Mountain Division trained for winter
combat and ultimately went on to
help lead the Allies to victory. For

Icelantic, this provision is particularly meaningful, as we feature
10th Mountain graphics and donate
the proceeds to the 10th Mountain
Division Foundation.
The CORE Act would also protect nearly 61,000 acres in the San
Juans. It would withdraw approximately 200,000 acres from future
oil and gas development in the
Thompson Divide, a key location
for backcountry hunters. The bill
would also create a program to
lease excess methane from coal
mines at the base of the Thompson
Divide to boost the local economy
and address climate change. Lastly,
the bill would formally establish
the boundary for the Curecanti National Recreation Area and provide
new fishing access in the Upper
Gunnison River Basin.
After growing up in Idaho
Springs, Colorado-where I spent
much of my childhood hiking,

camping, mountain biking, and
skiing-I feel fortunate to be running a company that helps people
enjoy these same activities. Even
more, I feel fortunate to run this
company in a state that is diligently working to balance priorities at
the local level to conserve our wild
places.
It's up to all of us to engage in
our communities to create the
future we want for our public lands
and our businesses. I encourage all
of the business leaders at this year's
Outdoor Retailer + Snow Show to
support the CORE Act and learn
more about how it will directly
influence our work.
Annelise Loevlie is the Chief
Executive Officer of Icelantic
Skis, headquartered in Golden,
Colorado. Learn more about the
CORE Act at bennet.senate.gov/
COREAct.

Annelise
Loevlie, CEO
Icelantic Skis.

SNOW SHOW 2019

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http://bennet.senate.gov/COREAct http://bennet.senate.gov/COREAct
The Daily - January 30, 2019

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