Secretary Salazar Announces Department of the Interior Economic Stimulus Projects in Colorado

Washington, D.C. – Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar today announced the Department of the Interior's projects under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 for Colorado. Across its Bureaus, the Department will invest $86.2 million in Colorado as part of the recovery plan signed by the President to jumpstart our economy, create or save millions of jobs, and put a down payment on addressing long-neglected challenges so our country can thrive in the 21st Century.

“As the steward of America's resources, our Department has a unique responsibility to carry out its mission in a transparent, open manner by arriving at policy decisions based on public input and ‘best science' practices,” said Secretary Salazar. “After a rigorous process of identifying merit-based projects that truly reflect the longstanding mission and priorities of our Bureaus, I am confident these investments meet the highest standards and will accomplish the goals as outlined by President Obama.”

DOI's ARRA investments in Colorado support President Obama and Secretary Salazar's ambitious goals to build America's new energy future, to protect and restore our treasured landscapes, to create a 21st Century Youth Conservation Corps, to address America's water challenges, and to empower Native American communities.

Highlights of Initiatives funded through ARRA in Colorado include:

National Park Service – $21 million in funding

• Eliminate hazardous trees in high use visitor areas and several maintenance projects at Rocky Mountain National Park
• Repair trails and footbridges parkwide at Curecanti National Recreation Area
• Several maintenance projects at Dinosaur National Monument, repairs to trails parkwide and the replacement of waterlines to prevent energy use of reservoir in Dinosaur National Monument

Fish & Wildlife Service – $9.2 million in funding

• Replace four pumps and pumpsites at the Browns Park National Wildlife Refuge
• Install new weatherport cover over new raceways and replace effluent ponds with news raceways, re-line settling ponds

Bureau of Indian Affairs – $2.2 million in funding

• Maintenance on roads and bridges
• Operation and maintenance repairs for Tribal Support Operations, detention center and employee housing

Bureau of Reclamation - $33.1 million in funding

• Repair an aging, damaged concrete bridge and water diversion structure for the Colorado-Big Thompson Project
• Provide a multi-facility condition monitoring system on the Fryingpan-A for the Fryingpan-Arkansas Project

Bureau of Land Management – $20.2 million in funding

• Multiple construction maintenance projects
• Remediation of abandoned mines

U.S. Geological Survey – $573,000 in funding

• Upgrade and repair streamgages

Secretary Salazar has pledged unprecedented levels of transparency and accountability in the implementation of the Department of the Interior's economic recovery projects. The public will be able to follow the progress of each project on www.recovery.gov and on www.interior.gov/recovery. Secretary Salazar has appointed a Senior Advisor for Economic Recovery, Chris Henderson, and an Interior Economic Recovery Task Force. Henderson and the Task Force will work closely with the Department of the Interior's Inspector General to ensure that the recovery program is meeting the high standards for accountability, responsibility, and transparency that President Obama has set.

For a complete list of projects for Colorado, please click here: http://recovery.doi.gov/CO