The Ute Indian Tribe has strong words for who they call the Colorado Elites for their opposition to the Uinta Basin Railway. The Tribe’s Thursday announcement states in part: Many economic and infrastructure benefits extend across Utah and Colorado and would be supported by the construction of the Uinta Basin Railway. Instead of supporting tribal economic development and safety, Colorado resort and environmental elites sought a decision from a Federal Appeals Court in Washington, D.C. that will send construction of the Railway back to the U.S. Surface Transportation Board for further review. With a median home price of more than $640,000, Eagle County, Colorado residents and so-called environmentalists at the Center for Biological Diversity took to the courts to try and tell the Ute Indian Tribe how to best manage its resources and support its members. The Ute Indian Tribal Business Committee said, “Once again, the people of Colorado are trying to push aside the Ute Indian Tribe and tell us where and how we should live. These are our ancestral lands that we sustainably managed for generations. We bring that same perspective to energy development and responsibly manage our resources.” Opposition to the Railway is another dishonorable act taken by Colorado against the Tribe. After forcing the Tribe to relocate to the Utah desert, Colorado refuses to acknowledge the Tribe’s retained hunting and fishing rights within Colorado and recently supported President Biden’s new National Monument on the Tribe’s ancestral lands without consulting with the Tribe. The Uinta Basin Railway would provide much-needed infrastructure and economic opportunities that will benefit domestic energy production, the construction industry, agriculture, and nearly every segment of the economy. As gas prices creep back above $4.00 nationally, new and safer routes are needed to get critical energy resources to domestic refineries.
