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The environment desk at Aspen Public Radio covers issues in the Roaring Fork Valley and throughout the state of Colorado including water use and quality, impact of recreation, population growth and oil and gas development. APR’s Environment Reporter is Elizabeth Stewart-Severy.

Colorado Lottery gives nod to AVLT Basecamp

Courtesy of Aspen Valley Land Trust

Aspen Valley Land Trust won an award for its creativity and vision in purchasing the land at the iconic Marble Basecamp. Elizabeth Stewart-Severy has the details.

For about 50 years, Aspen Middle School has used property in Marble as a base camp for its flagship eighth grade outdoor education.

To guarantee future students will have this same opportunity, Aspen Valley Land Trust raised $550,000 last year to purchase the property. A grant from Great Outdoors Colorado provided half of those funds, and now, the Colorado Lottery is recognizing Aspen Valley Land Trust as a Starburst award winner.

This award honors conservation that improves the local community in creative ways. Suzanne Stephens from Aspen Valley Land Trust said seeing eighth graders in action was powerful for staffers from Great Outdoors Colorado.

“They actually came out and were able to visit the property while the eighth grade class was in process and it made a huge impression,” she said.

There will be a community presentation of the award this fall, which will likely coincide with a dedication of the property, which has been re-named the Chapin Wright Marble Basecamp.

 

Aspen native Elizabeth Stewart-Severy is excited to be making a return to both the Red Brick, where she attended kindergarten, and the field of journalism. She has spent her entire life playing in the mountains and rivers around Aspen, and is thrilled to be reporting about all things environmental in this special place. She attended the University of Colorado with a Boettcher Scholarship, and graduated as the top student from the School of Journalism in 2006. Her lifelong love of hockey lead to a stint working for the Colorado Avalanche, and she still plays in local leagues and coaches the Aspen Junior Hockey U-19 girls.
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