Thursday, September 11, 2014

Montana orders drilling limits to help sage grouse

Gov. Steve Bullock on Tuesday ordered restrictions on future oil drilling and other activities blamed for driving down sage grouse numbers, bringing Montana into step with other states across the West rushing to head off federal intervention for the ground-dwelling bird. The order establishes no-occupancy zones that extend six-tenths of a mile around certain sage grouse breeding grounds. Roads could not be built in those areas, and other activities, such as oil and gas exploration, would be allowed on a seasonal basis. Existing land uses, including agriculture, coal mines and oil wells that already are in place, would be exempt. The restrictions, similar to rules in Wyoming, are meant to prevent disturbances and increase breeding success for the chicken-sized birds, known for an elaborate mating ritual in which males strut around and puff out their breasts in a colorful display. The no-occupancy zones are smaller than the 1-mile radius recommended in January by an advisory council established by the governor. Representatives of the oil and gas industry had pushed for the smaller area. Energy companies still will have to alter their activities to comply, industry representatives said. But Josh Osher with the Western Watersheds Project said the order isn't enough to reverse the bird's decades-long decline. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service faces a September 2015 deadline to make an initial determination on whether sage grouse should be added to the list of threatened and endangered species. Before that date arrives, Montana and other states want to demonstrate that sweeping federal protections aren't needed. State officials want to keep local jurisdiction over the birds and avoid conservation measures that could be more onerous than what's been proposed. Such a result came for the Arctic grayling, a Montana cold-water fish that federal officials decided against protecting, saying local restoration efforts already were in place. Bullock characterized Tuesday's order on sage grouse as a compromise that balances conservation with landowners' rights. He plans to include a proposal in his budget for a Sage Grouse Stewardship and Conservation Fund, to encourage ranchers and other private landowners to voluntarily conserve sage grouse habitat...more

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