Baca National Wildlife Refuge: Facts, Discussion Forum, and Encyclopedia Article

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Baca National Wildlife Refuge

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	Topics Baca National Wildlife Refuge Topic Home The Baca National Wildlife Refuge is 92,500 acre (374 km²) United StatesUnited States Overview The United States of America, also known as the United States, the U.S., the U.S.A., and America, is... National Wildlife RefugeNational Wildlife Refuge National Wildlife Refuge is a designation for certain protected areas of the United States managed by the United States Fish... located in southern ColoradoColorado Colorado is a state in the western United States.... . It is located on the lands of the Luis Maria Baca Grant No. 4Luis Maria Baca Grant No. 4 [Image:BacaView.jpg\|thumb\|right\|300px\|View from the northwestern corner of the Grant]]... near Crestone, ColoradoCrestone, Colorado Crestone is a town in Saguache County in Southwestern Colorado, United States.... in the San Luis ValleySan Luis Valley San Luis Valley is a large broad alpine valley in the Rio Grande Basin of south-central Colorado.... in northern AlamosaAlamosa County, Colorado Alamosa County is a county located in the U.S.... and southern SaguacheSaguache County, Colorado Saguache County is a county located in the U.S.... counties, about northwest of the town of AlamosaAlamosa, Colorado Alamosa is a city in Alamosa County, Colorado, United States.... , on the west side of the Sangre de Cristo RangeSangre de Cristo Range The Sangre de Cristo Range is a narrow mountain range of the Rocky Mountains running north and south along the east side of ... . The site was authorized by the United States CongressUnited States Congress Overview The United States Congress is the legislature of the United States federal government.... in 2000 as part of legislation that also authorized the nearby Great Sand Dunes National Park. It was formally established in 2003 when administration began under the United States Fish and Wildlife ServiceUnited States Fish and Wildlife Service The United States Fish and Wildlife Service is a unit of the United States Department of the Interior that is dedicated to m... . It is administered jointly with the nearby AlamosaAlamosa National Wildlife Refuge The Alamosa National Wildlife Refuge is a 11,169 acre United States National Wildlife Refuge located in southern Colorado.... and Monte VistaMonte Vista National Wildlife Refuge Monte Vista National Wildlife Refuge is a United State National Wildlife Refuge located in southern Colorado.... NWR as part of the Alamosa/Baca/Monte Verde Complex. The refuge consists of rangelandFacts About Rangeland ... and some riparian wetlandFacts About Wetland In physical geography, a wetland is an environment "at the interface between truly terrestrial ecosystems...and truly aquati... s. It includes several thousand acres of irrigatedIrrigation Irrigation is the replacement or supplementation of rainfall with water from another source in order to grow crops or plants... hay meadows. The original ranch headquarters and other buildings are on the wildlife refuge. As is usual on federal wildlife refuges, grazing and hay production continue on a limited basis. The establishment of the refuge and national park was part of complex arrangement of land transfers undertaken by the federal government in cooperation with the Nature ConservancyThe Nature Conservancy The Nature Conservancy is a leading environmental organization working to protect the most ecologically important lands and ... and the State of ColoradoColorado Colorado is a state in the western United States.... . Approximately 3,300 acres (13 km²) of the land was previously under the management of the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation and was transferred to the Fish and Wildlife Service. Approximately 97,036 acres (393 km²) of the land for the refuge and park was part of the historic Baca Ranch and was purchased by the Nature Conservancy before its transfer to the federal government. The refuge forms part of complex of wetlandWetland In physical geography, a wetland is an environment "at the interface between truly terrestrial ecosystems...and truly aquati... s in the San Luis Valley consists of lands of nearby landowners, including the Colorado Board of Land Commissioners, the National Park ServiceNational Park Service The National Park Service is the United States federal agency that manages all National Parks, many National Monuments, and ... , and the Nature Conservancy. Oil and gas exploration The mineral rights to the lands of the Baca NWR are owned by a third party. Lexam Explorations (U.S.A.) Inc. (Lexam) has given notice of its intent to drill two exploratory wells. There is believed to be a small chance that commercial quantities of natural gasNatural gas Natural gas, commonly referred to as gas, is a gaseous fossil fuel consisting primarily of methane.... may be discovered. (An existing artesian well on the land, called the "gas well", produced enough gas to heat one home.) Local environmentalists have obtained a court order requiring the Fish and Wildlife Service to prepare an environmental assessment with respect to the drilling. The draft environmental assessment was released January 18, 2008 for public comment. External links and further reading This document contains, in addition to considerations specific to the proposed exploratory drilling, a number of interesting maps and much other information about the refuge. Morning EditionMorning Edition *Morning Edition* is an American radio news program produced and distributed by National Public Radio.... report by Jeff Brady on NPR, January 10, 2008