Glenwood Springs Editorial Board Urges BLM to Block Rocky Mountain Industrials Quarry Expansion

Glenwood Springs —The limestone cliffs off Transfer Trail loom over Glenwood Springs, a geological fixture that has quietly supplied the base for local construction for decades. But for over eight years, the silence of that hillside has been broken by a single, unified rallying cry: Don’t Mine Glenwood.

The Post Independent editorial board, with editor Taylor Cramer recusing himself from the decision, has drawn a hard line in the sand. They argue that community opposition must trump any political pressure from Washington, D.C., specifically regarding the proposed expansion of the Rocky Mountain Industrials (RMI) quarry. The current scaled-back plan, which seeks to expand the footprint from roughly 20 acres to just over 56 acres, is currently under review by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM).

Let’s do the math on the scale of this encroachment. We aren’t talking about a minor adjustment. The previous, more aggressive proposal called for 321 acres. Even if RMI’s current offer is a compromise, the newspaper notes that the former expansion plan has never been formally withdrawn. That’s a ticking clock. If the BLM approves the 56-acre expansion, there’s no guarantee the requests for future expansion won’t keep coming.

The stakes here are local, not federal. The primary concern is the delicate limestone formations that channel groundwater from the Flat Tops Wilderness. That water feeds the geothermal hot springs that drive our tourism economy. Damage the geology, and you damage the asset that keeps our hotels full and our restaurants busy.

The risks are tangible. Increased truck traffic clogging the roads. A visual scar on the mountainside that grows larger every year. Air quality concerns. Increased wildfire risk. These aren’t abstract concepts; they are daily realities for neighbors living near Transfer Trail.

Political unity, usually a rare commodity in Glenwood, has emerged on this issue. Republican U.S. Rep. Jeff Hurd joined Democratic U.S. Sens. Michael Bennet and John Hickenlooper last week to introduce the Glenwood Hot Springs Protection Act. Their goal is straightforward: block the BLM from approving the plan.

Hurd acknowledged that responsible mining matters, but argued the quarry is simply in the wrong location to do it responsibly. He emphasized during a virtual press call that “responsible resource development … requires respecting the communities that live with the decisions that made long after Washington has moved on.”

That phrase is the key. Washington makes the call. We live with the consequences.

The publication warns that city officials who traveled to D.C. for a lobbying trip in June were advised that the Trump administration views this plan — and pretty much any new mining plans — favorably. That’s a political headwind. But the bipartisan coalition of current and former local elected officials has already bridged the divide.

The bottom line is simple. The 20-acre footprint is the baseline. The 56-acre proposal is the current threat. The 321-acre ghost is still lurking in the paperwork. If the BLM approves the expansion, locals get more trucks, less groundwater security, and a bigger scar on the view. The community has spoken for eight years. The editorial board is just telling the Feds to listen.