Keeping LPC Conservation Dollars Where the Work is Done Key

July 2, 2026 – Conservation and ranching in cooperation and requiring the payment of compensatory mitigation in the area where the work is occurring was the discussion among CCA members. CCA Southeast Quarter Representative R.J. Jolly spoke before the Water Resources and Agriculture Review Committee last week as a director of the CCA Board and a Cheyenne County Commissioner about Lesser Prairie Chickens. Currently unlisted, ag producers and other stakeholders are making concerted efforts to expand habitat and populations through the creation of a conservation bank to keep chicken money in the areas where efforts are being made to improve habitat.

Jolly said wind and other renewable energy projects have come into Colorado, causing damage to LPC habitat and ranchers and other stakeholders have made investments in restoring habitat and mitigating the damage. The funds to compensate those doing that conservation work, however, has gone to Kansas as Colorado does not require energy companies to pay compensatory mitigation where the damage occurs.

“These renewable energy projects, since they’ve been determined to be part of the problem in the decline of the prairie chicken, they’ve had to pay (compensatory mitigation) to continue their projects,” Jolly said. “All those dollars have gone to Kansas even though they were Cheyenne County and Kit Carson County and Baca County and Prowers County, Colorado, projects none of those dollars were brought to Colorado to try to improve habitat and come up with practices to improve habitat to end the decline and maybe increase the population of these prairie chickens in Colorado and avoid these endangered and threatened listings.”

State Land Board Director Nicole Rosmarino and Prowers County rancher Dallas May also spoke as voices from the areas where the work is being done. With an influx of renewable energy projects in various stages across southeastern Colorado and New Mexico, rewarding ranchers for the work that is already being done is the cooperation May said will result in increased habitat and ranchers with improved outcomes.

Source: Western Ag Network

Photo by USDA NRCS, Texas