The effort to grant “rights of nature” to Boulder Creek through Nederland as a legacy for generations to come lasted less than three years. The human guardians appointed to voice those rights lasted less than five months. The Nederland town board voted unanimously late Tuesday to repeal a 2021 rights of nature resolution meant to give a policy voice to watershed environmental protections, in clearly stated pique at a nonprofit group opposing a dam the town wants to build on the creek’s middle branch.   Nederland board members claimed they were misled by Save the World’s Rivers and its leader Gary Wockner to bolster river protections, only to have the group file formal objections in water court to Nederland’s plan for a new reservoir on Middle Boulder Creek.

Related articles: 

• Huffington Post: An Ugly Fight Is Brewing Over Public Lands In Colorado 
• The Aspen Times: Colorado lawmakers agree on approach to protect state wetlands