TNC says ease up on GOCO

The Colorado state director of The Nature Conservancy is coming to the defense of GOCO (Great Outdoors Colorado). As noted here earlier this month, some legislators have been criticizing GOCO for relying on easements, and not buying land outright. The debate is over whether the original vote that set up GOCO was sold as a land buying mechanism, and whether the current board has a bias against the state holding property. In an op-ed column in Sunday's Rocky Mountain News, Charles Bedford says the criticisms are way off base.
"Starting in 2003, GOCO initiated a rigorous public process that focused state and local agencies and nonprofits on identifying conservation needs and opportunities. Following this call for strategic vision and proposals, they opted not to borrow against Colorado's future. Instead, the organization found creative opportunities to preserve more than 80,000 acres with current resources and without borrowing. GOCO still has the option to bond, but in our mind, GOCO's strategy was bold as well as fiscally responsible.
In the interest of full disclosure, Mr. Bedford probably should have noted that TNC and GOCO have collaborated on projects. But the argument he makes is on the money.