The Bureau of Land Management has updated its greater sage grouse management plan for western states and is taking public comments on the document. Despite attempts to decrease the prairie bird’s decline, populations fell 41% between 2002 and 2021. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service declared the birds warranted for protection under the Endangered Species Act in 2010 but precluded from any stringent actions as private landowners, state and federal agencies attempted to halt the decline by protecting habitat. For Montana, the new document would make few changes under the BLM’s proposed alternative, mostly ensuring that management of sage grouse is the same across field office and state boundaries. Conservation groups hope the plan will provide greater protection of sage grouse habitat in places like the Dillon Field Office, which has been identified for possible oil and gas development. To learn more, check out my story at https://billingsgazette.com/outdoors/bureau-of-land-management-greater-sage-grouse-draft-plan/article_c4d42c32-e569-11ee-9f51-3781f8ff40bf.html.
Written by Brett French | Outdoors Editor for Billings Gazette Communications
