Volunteer Projects and Educational Programs in and around Pawnee National Grassland in Colorado Planned for 2015
Denver, CO -(Ammoland.com)- Tread Lightly!, a leading national nonprofit empowering people to connect with nature and enjoy outdoor recreation, has partnered with Noble Energy, Inc. to support multiple-use access, sustainability, education and stewardship of America’s natural resources.
The initial focus of this new and innovative partnership will be on the Pawnee National Grassland, near the community of Greeley, Colorado.
The multifaceted “Nurturing with Nature” partnership is highlighted by the development of a unique educational program to connect Greeley students with the outdoors. By integrating outdoor ethics and skills education into local schools, Tread Lightly! and Noble Energy are providing Greeley’s youth with direct exposure to nature. This type of exposure has proven essential for healthy childhood development and nurturing a society of good citizens and environmental stewards.
The Nurturing with Nature campaign also involves several hands-on projects centered around Restoration for Recreation, a Tread Lightly! initiative designed to help keep America’s natural resources healthy, accessible and relevant to the public. Infrastructure improvement projects are scheduled through September 2015 at popular recreational areas including the Baker Draw area, the Main Draw OHV Area, and the Pawnee Buttes Trailhead.
“Nurturing with Nature is aimed at connecting people — especially kids — with nature to conserve and enjoy the great outdoors, and would not be possible without Noble’s leadership and commitment to positively impacting the communities in which it operates,” said Lori McCullough, executive director for Tread Lightly!. “Tread Lightly! is proud to bring Noble Energy and the U.S. Forest Service together to provide outdoor education for the area’s youth and improve popular outdoor recreation areas and facilities.”
“Our partnership with Tread Lightly! and the Forest Service is an investment in the future, the students and the local environment,” said Chip Rimer, senior vice president, U.S. Onshore at Noble Energy. “It is a direct reflection of our commitment to support the communities where we operate and provide employees with volunteer opportunities that make a difference.”
“The U.S. Forest Service utilizes this kind of public-private partnership to support access to our public lands,” Arapaho and Roosevelt National Forests and Pawnee National Grassland Forest Supervisor Glenn Casamassa said. “Tread Lightly!, which has its roots in the Forest Service, serves an important role to help maintain the natural treasures that are so important to all of us.”
Located in north central Colorado, the Pawnee National Grassland is managed by the U.S. Forest Service for multiple uses ranging from outdoor education to energy exploration to wildlife habitat. The area is visited annually by tens-of-thousands of outdoor enthusiasts who participate in off-highway vehicle riding, hiking, camping and bird watching, along with many other activities. It is also within a short driving distance of Noble Energy’s U.S. Onshore operations headquarters in Denver.
The partnership is expected to have an immediate and long-term positive impact on the Pawnee National Grassland and surrounding community of Greeley, and it complements the U.S. Forest Service’s mission of “caring for the land, serving people,” as well as Noble’s purpose: “Energizing the World, Bettering People’s Lives.” This innovative program will serve as a template that can be applied in other locations across the country.
Follow Tread Lightly! at https://www.facebook.com/TLoutdoorethics and https://twitter.com/tread_lightly.
More details and volunteer opportunities will be announced in the coming weeks.
About Tread Lightly!
Tread Lightly! is celebrating its 25th anniversary as a national nonprofit organization in October 2015. Founded in 1990 through a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the U.S. Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management, Tread Lightly! promotes responsible outdoor recreation through ethics education and stewardship programs. Tread Lightly! has more than 70 official partners from various industries and is likely the nation’s only non-profit holding MOUs with every federal and state agency in the U.S. Tread Lightly!’s diverse member base enjoys a wide range of outdoor activities including hunting, angling, camping, boating, biking, four-wheeling and much more.
Become a Tread Lightly! partner or member today and start supporting access, education and stewardship at www.treadlightly.org.
About Noble Energy
Noble Energy is a leading independent energy company engaged in worldwide oil and natural gas exploration and production. The Company has core operations onshore in the U.S., primarily in the DJ Basin and Marcellus Shale, in the Gulf of Mexico, offshore Eastern Mediterranean, and offshore West Africa. Noble Energy is listed on the New York Stock Exchange and is traded under the ticker symbol NBL.
Further information is available at www.nobleenergyinc.com and www.noblecolorado.com.
About U.S. Forest Service
The mission of the Forest Service, part of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, is to sustain the health, diversity, and productivity of the Nation’s forests and grasslands to meet the needs of present and future generations. The agency manages 193 million acres of public land, provides assistance to state and private landowners, and maintains the largest forestry research organization in the world. Public lands the Forest Service manages contribute more than $13 billion to the economy each year through visitor spending alone. Those same lands provide 20 percent of the Nation’s clean water supply, a value estimated at $7.2 billion per year. The agency has either a direct or indirect role in stewardship of about 80 percent of the 850 million forested acres within the U.S., of which 100 million acres are urban forests where most Americans live.
For more information, visit www.fs.fed.us.