The County That Said No

By Sean M. Pond | Guest Commentary, Rocky Mountain Voice

There are moments in history when ordinary people must decide if they will remain silent or rise up. If they will be ruled or govern themselves. If they will allow outsiders to rewrite their way of life, or if they will draw a line and say, “This far, and no further.”

Montrose County just drew that line.

I authored and introduced Ordinance 2025-01, a landmark measure that would prohibit the introduction, facilitation, or establishment of non-native animal species in our county. It has passed its first reading and entered a 30-day public review period before coming back for final consideration. And while this ordinance may seem narrow in scope, it represents something far greater. It is a declaration of sovereignty. It is a defense of heritage. And it is a message to every government agency, activist group, and out-of-state special interest that we will not be their science experiment. 

We will not be their laboratory. Montrose County belongs to the people who live here, and we are taking back control of our future.

This Is About Far More Than Wildlife

The debate over non-native species is not about animals. It is about power. It is about who makes the decisions that shape our land, our livelihoods, and our future. It is about whether rural communities like ours will continue to be dictated to by people who have never set foot on our soil, or whether we will chart our own destiny.

For decades, we have been told to sit down, stay quiet, and trust “the experts.” We have watched policies crafted in distant cities ripple through our communities like shockwaves. We have seen livelihoods destroyed, landscapes transformed, and multi-generational family operations reduced to collateral damage, all in the name of environmental experiments pushed by those who never bear the cost.

These decisions are not harmless. They carry consequences. When non-native predators are introduced, livestock is lost, grazing allotments are cut, and families are forced to fight for their land. When ecosystems are manipulated for political agendas, water rights are challenged, roads are closed, and property values are threatened. And when new restrictions follow, our oil and gas projects stall, our mining operations are blocked, and our timber industry is strangled.

It is a deliberate strategy: choke off the land, weaken the industries that sustain us, and make rural America dependent on decisions made somewhere else.

Not here. Not anymore.

The Law And The People Are On Our Side

We are not acting recklessly. We are acting lawfully and deliberately. Under C.R.S. § 30-15-401, counties have the power to pass ordinances on matters of local concern, including the regulation of animals in unincorporated areas. Under C.R.S. §§ 30-15-403 through 30-15-407, we are required to follow a transparent legislative process, which we are doing. And under C.R.S. § 33-6-114(3), it is already unlawful to release wildlife without authorization from Colorado Parks and Wildlife.

We are not creating new law. We are enforcing existing law where it matters most. And we are doing it to protect far more than wildlife.

We are protecting private property rights, the foundation of freedom and prosperity.

We are protecting water rights, the lifeblood of agriculture and industry.

We are protecting oil and gas, the energy that powers our homes and fuels our economy.

We are protecting mining, the source of the rare earth elements and critical minerals that underpin modern life and national security.

We are protecting timber, ranching, agriculture, and grazing, the industries that feed and sustain our nation.

And in doing so, we are protecting every Coloradan, urban and rural alike, because when rural Colorado is strong, the entire state is strong.

“When we protect our land, we protect our food, our water, our energy, and our freedom. That is why Montrose County said no, and we are not backing down.”

This Fight Is Bigger Than Montrose County

What is happening here is not isolated. It is a battle line in a larger war being waged across the West, a struggle over who controls the land, who controls the resources beneath it, and who controls the destiny of the people who depend on both. This is not a debate about animals. It is a battle for sovereignty, self-determination, and survival.

If we lose control of our land, we lose control of our food.

If we lose control of our water, we lose control of our future.

If we lose control of our energy, we lose control of our independence.

And if we lose control of the decisions that govern us, we lose control of America itself.

That is why Montrose County said no. We said no to being dictated to. We said no to being manipulated. We said no to being treated as expendable. And we said yes, yes to self-government, yes to local control, yes to the people who built this state with their own hands and intend to pass it down to their children.

A Challenge To The Rest Of Colorado And To The Nation

This is where the fight begins. But it cannot end here. Every county in Colorado has the same legal authority. Every local government faces the same threats. And every community has the same decision to make: Will you stand up, or will you stand by?

I am calling on counties across this state and across this country to rise. Use your authority. Pass your own ordinances. Defend your land, your industries, your people, and your future. Do not wait for permission. Do not wait for leadership to come from somewhere else. Be the leadership.

Montrose County took the first step. We are proud to be the county that said no, no to reckless policies, no to outside interference, no to becoming someone else’s social experiment. We are proud to have drawn the line. We are proud to stand shoulder to shoulder with the people who depend on us for their very way of life.

The question now is not whether we will fight. We already are.

The question is whether you will stand with us.

The proposed ordinance can be read in its entirety here: https://legistarweb-production.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads/attachment/pdf/3664373/NonNative_Species_Ordinance.pdf

Sean M. Pond is a Montrose County Commissioner for District 3, a U.S. Navy veteran who served in the Persian Gulf including during Operation Desert Shield, and a fifth generation Colorado native. He has stood on stages across the state defending constitutional freedoms, protecting rural Colorado, and fighting back against government overreach. Sean travels regularly to communities across Colorado to meet with local leaders, grassroots groups, and everyday citizens, building a movement to restore liberty in the state.

Editor’s note: Opinions expressed in commentary pieces are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the management of the Rocky Mountain Voice, but even so we support the constitutional right of the author to express those opinions.