{"id":107968,"date":"2025-03-01T14:52:52","date_gmt":"2025-03-01T20:52:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/milesfortis.com\/?p=107968"},"modified":"2025-03-01T14:52:52","modified_gmt":"2025-03-01T20:52:52","slug":"107968","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/milesfortis.com\/?p=107968","title":{"rendered":""},"content":{"rendered":"

US Forest Service Closes Majority of Pike National Forest to Target Shooting, Sparking Legal Objections<\/a><\/p>\n

Colorado \u2013<\/strong>\u00a0The U.S. Forest Service (USFS) has finalized a\u00a0sweeping ban on dispersed recreational shooting<\/a> \u2013 where forest visitors set up targets and practice shooting in an undesignated, undeveloped location \u2013 across 73% of the 1.1 million-acre Pike National Forest, a move that has drawn significant opposition from Second Amendment advocates.<\/p>\n

The decision, part of the agency\u2019s\u00a0Integrated Management of Target Shooting Project<\/a>, aims to address what officials call \u201cunacceptable risks to public safety\u201d as the forest sees increased use from hikers, cyclists, and off-roaders.<\/p>\n

Under the new policy, over 800,000 acres will be off-limits to dispersed target shooting, while six designated shooting ranges will be developed with noise abatement features and safety measures. The closures will be implemented in phases, with areas near Rampart Range Road, previously subject to emergency orders, among the first to be restricted. The agency insists that the plan balances public safety, resource management, and recreational shooting opportunities.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis decision marks the transition from one era of recreational shooting into the next,\u201d said Douglas County Board of Commissioners Chair George Teal, who supports the ban. <\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

The move has also been praised by the Southern Shooting Partnership, a coalition of government and utility agencies that have worked for years to address shooting-related conflicts in the region.<\/strong><\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

However, gun rights advocates argue that the ban is a clear violation of the Second Amendment.<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Mountain States Legal Foundation\u2019s Center to Keep and Bear Arms has filed\u00a0an official objection,<\/a>\u00a0challenging the Forest Service\u2019s authority to restrict firearms-related activities on such a massive scale.<\/p>\n

\u201cBy restricting the people\u2019s right to engage in dispersed target shooting within the Pike National Forest, the USFS is attempting to regulate arms-bearing conduct in violation of the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution,\u201d the foundation\u2019s objection states.<\/strong><\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

<\/p>\n

Critics argue that the ban disproportionately punishes law-abiding shooters while failing to address enforcement issues.\u00a0\u201cTarget practice is one of the most basic uses of a firearm and is an integral part of being a responsible gun owner,\u201d<\/em>\u00a0<\/strong>said\u00a0<\/a>Greg Sutherland, a Colorado gun rights advocate working with the Mountain States Legal Foundation.\u00a0\u201cThis move unfairly restricts safe, law-abiding target shooters while providing no real evidence of safety concerns.\u201d<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

The Forest Service defends its decision, asserting that the closure is necessary due to increased user conflicts, environmental concerns, and at least one confirmed fatality linked to recreational shooting.<\/p>\n

The agency claims the new shooting ranges will provide a safer, more controlled environment while preserving public access to firearms training.<\/strong><\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Opponents, however, are skeptical about the feasibility of the plan.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cThey are talking about consolidating shooting that previously took place over 800,000 acres into a handful of shooting ranges,\u201d Sutherland said. \u201cThere is no guarantee that more than three ranges will even be built, nor that they will be able to handle demand. The numbers just don\u2019t add up.\u201d<\/strong><\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Under the Supreme Court\u2019s 2022 Bruen decision, gun rights organizations argue that any restriction on firearm-related activities must align with historical traditions of firearm regulation. \u201cThere is no historical precedent for this kind of restriction on public lands,\u201d said Mountain States Legal Foundation in a statement. \u201cThe Forest Service must justify its regulation in accordance with the Second Amendment, and so far, they have failed to do so.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Forest Service maintains that its decision does not infringe on the right to bear arms but rather delineates where target shooting may take place. However, enforcement remains a key concern, with critics questioning how effectively the government can monitor compliance across such a vast area.<\/p>\n

For now, the battle over, dispersed shooting, in Pike National Forest appears far from over. With legal challenges mounting, the Forest Service\u2019s plan may soon face judicial scrutiny as Second Amendment advocates prepare to fight what they see as an overreach by federal authorities.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

US Forest Service Closes Majority of Pike National Forest to Target Shooting, Sparking Legal Objections Colorado \u2013\u00a0The U.S. Forest Service (USFS) has finalized a\u00a0sweeping ban on dispersed recreational shooting \u2013 where forest visitors set up targets and practice shooting in an undesignated, undeveloped location \u2013 across 73% of the 1.1 million-acre Pike National Forest, a … Continue reading “”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[39,36],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-107968","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-bureaucraps","category-gun-schtuff"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/milesfortis.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/107968","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/milesfortis.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/milesfortis.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/milesfortis.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/milesfortis.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=107968"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/milesfortis.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/107968\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":107969,"href":"https:\/\/milesfortis.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/107968\/revisions\/107969"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/milesfortis.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=107968"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/milesfortis.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=107968"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/milesfortis.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=107968"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}