Sep 8, 2014 1 min read

I am pleased that the Obama administration is leading the effort to conserve the Greater Sage-Grouse, one of the most iconic and imperiled bird species of the American West. However, according to a scorecard released by conservation groups, the administration’s plan for grouse in Wyoming does not comply with the best available science or with standards necessary to protect grouse populations.

I feel strongly that the Bureau of Land Management and the USDA Forest Service need to follow the measures called for by agency scientists to conserve the species. These include recommendations to limit future oil and gas drilling and mining, better grazing practices and the creation of protected areas.

Conserving the Greater Sage-Grouse will require protecting large areas of habitat. Most priority sage-grouse habitat is already heavily degraded and grouse are only persisting in large, relatively undisturbed blocks of habitat.

Protecting the remaining large expanses of important sage-grouse habitat will also help stem the decline of many species of wildlife and preserve the wide-open spaces of the American West for future generations of Americans.

Mark Wolfe

Ingram