BLM plan may keep grouse off endangered list

The Bureau of Land Management's decision Monday to revise its Wyoming sage grouse management plan to more closely align with the state's "core areas" conservation approach will limit some new industrial activities. But it will also give Wyoming the best chance it has to keep the sage grouse from being federally protected under the Endangered Species Act, which could potentially shut down energy development in much of Wyoming and have a huge economic impact on the state, including much-reduced tax revenues to operate state government. Primarily for that reason, it was the right action for the agency to take. We hope energy developers will realize that while they will have to deal with some new restrictions, those are relatively minor compared to what would happen if the sage grouse is fully federally protected. The bird is not on the brink of extinction in this state, even though it is under federal review for protection by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which is expected to announce its decision later this year. But the sage grouse's habitat overlaps some of the state's best places for development of natural gas and wind energy...read more