WYOMING — Both Senate Western Caucus Chair Cynthia Lummis (R-WY) and Governor Mark Gordon have put out statements criticizing the Biden-Harris Bureau of Land Management (BLM) final Greater Sage-Grouse Rangewide Planning Resource Management Plan that was released this November.
The BLM Plan will increase protections for sage grouse and impact sage-grouse habitats in Wyoming, California, Nevada, Oregon, Idaho, Utah, Colorado, Montana, North Dakota and South Dakota. Buckrail previously reported on the BLM recommendations for stronger sage-grouse conservation measures here.
On Nov. 8, Governor Gordon condemned the Plan for neglecting Wyoming “leadership, experience and knowledge with regard to management of both sage-grouse populations and habitat.” According to Gordon, Wyoming governors have managed sage grouse over the past 16 years and need no federal regulation on top of state management.
On Nov. 15, Senator Lummis released a statement with Congressional Western Caucus Chair Dan Newhouse (R-WA) saying that the Plan will compromise farmers, ranchers and landowners whose livelihoods depend on management on these federal lands. Like Governor Gordon, Senator Lummis argued that management of wildlife populations should be restored to the states.
However, in the Plan the BLM states that management is needed at a larger level than state by state due to the expansive habitat of sage grouse. According to the BLM, the Plan provides “consistent and effective rangewide conservation” necessary to keep sage grouse populations intact. One of the primary aims of the Plan is to avoid listing sage grouse under the Endangered Species Act, which would increase protections and impact ranchers and farmers even more.
Governor Gordon will lead state agencies through a Protest response, in addition to his Consistency Review, due Dec. 16 and Jan. 7, 2025, respectively.
