WASHINGTON —Two of the state’s top officeholders this week called on President Barack Obama to wield the power of the White House to safeguard a stretch of the Arkansas River in central Colorado that’s a popular destination for whitewater rafters.

In a short letter to the administration, Gov. John Hickenlooper and U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet urged Obama to declare Browns Canyon near Salida a “national monument,” which would bring a new layer of federal protection to the region.

The letter is a follow-up to a town-hall meeting earlier this month in which an estimated 500 residents met with elected officials to discuss the possibility of shielding Browns Canyon.

Read more here.