Sage

Wyoming Gov. Matt Mead on Thursday directed his state’s attorney general to intervene in support of the federal agencies targeted by a lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Idaho by four environmental groups that don’t like the greater sage grouse state-federal protection strategy hammered out last year (see Daily GPI,Sept. 22, 2015).

A Wyoming coalition of counties and conservation groups last Monday filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court of Wyoming in Cheyenne, challenging efforts to protect the greater sage grouse over parts of 11 western states, including Wyoming, where Gov. Matt Mead has embraced the efforts (see Daily GPI,Sept. 22, 2015).

Counties and mining interests in Nevada have filed a lawsuit in a federal district court in Reno, NV, seeking to block the historic state-federal agreement protecting the greater sage grouse by restricting development in designated habitat areas in a state-administered program (see Daily GPI, Sept. 22).

Following last month’s milestone decision to keep the beleaguered greater sage grouse off the endangered species listing, federal agencies in Utah have temporarily closed more than 233,000 acres of public and national forest lands for up to two years while they determine if the lands’ importance to the ground-based bird habitat is such that they should be made off limits for a longer period.

In the wake of the milestone decision by federal officials to not list the greater sage grouse as endangered or threatened, Wyoming Gov. Matt Mead late Tuesday said he intends to pursue a regional initiative to reform the Endangered Species Act (ESA) as incoming Western Governors’ Association (WGA) chairman.

Wyoming Gov. Matt Mead tipped his cap to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Friday for its $211 million, four-year plan to help western states’ efforts to preserve greater sage grouse habitat.

As a dozen western states hope to head off an endangered species listing next month for the greater sage grouse, an updated census of the ground-dwelling bird that is scheduled to be released later this month could show favorable upward trends.

As part of a governors’ consistency review by western states, Wyoming Gov. Matt Mead on Thursday lobbied federal regulators to seriously consider state plans for protecting the greater sage grouse. The western states want to avoid an Endangered Species Act (ESA) listing for the bird, which could hinder energy development.

Montana Gov. Steve Bullock has signed an agreement to work cooperatively with federal and state officials to preserve greater sage grouse habitat on working rangelands.