The U.S. Bureau of Land Management is moving ahead with a 156,000-acre oil and gas lease sale in Lakewood on June 16, part of President Donald Trump’s push to open more public lands for drilling.

The sale includes more than 100 parcels that provide key migration corridors for elk and other big game, according to an analysis by Capital and Main. Many are in Moffat County, known as the “elk hunting capital of the world,” where outdoor recreation is a major part of the local economy.

Nick Gevock, Northern Rockies wildlands and wildlife campaign organizer for the Sierra Club, said oil and gas activity in elk habitat could reduce herd numbers.

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“That's going to result in less public hunting opportunity,” Gevock contended. “It's not just elk either. There are pronghorn antelope there, mule deer, and all kinds of nongame species.”

The Trump administration said increased drilling is part of its goal of achieving energy dominance. The administration’s “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” prioritizes fossil fuel extraction over recreation and conservation on public lands.

The law also requires nine Western states, including Colorado, to hold at least four lease sales per year. It cuts oil and gas royalties as well, a move expected to cost Colorado $148 million in revenue this year. According to government data, the U.S. has produced more crude oil than any other nation in recorded history for well over a decade.

Alison Gallensky, conservation geographer for the conservation group Rocky Mountain Wild, said the country’s strength is not just in what it extracts and sells but in its landscapes and the wildlife calling them home.

“There's enough room in this country to develop the energy we need and also to protect the animals and the places that people in Colorado and in the whole country love,” Gallensky asserted.

A recent Colorado College survey of voters in eight Western states found 76% want Congress to prioritize conservation over energy development on lands owned by all Americans. Rocky Mountain Wild has documented how drilling could prove fatal for 17 endangered species and threatened plants, including the wolverine, black-footed ferret, Colorado hookless cactus and Parachute penstemon.

“There are a lot of potential impacts and a lot of research that shows how oil and gas development can threaten these species,” Gallensky added.