The fate of the greater sage grouse, a remarkable bird that once flourished across the American West, now largely rests with the Bureau of Land Management (BLM). Right now, BLM is in the final stages of revising its latest greater sage grouse plans, the blueprint that could potentially save this species in long-term decline. The plans will guide how 69 million acres of vital habitat — also known as the Sagebrush Sea — will be managed.
The greater sage grouse is in trouble. Its population has declined 80% since 1965 with 40% of that plunge occurring in the last 20 years alone. This dramatic population decline is linked to the loss and fragmentation of the Sagebrush Sea, now reduced to about half of its historic extent with only a small fraction (under 15%) still considered to have high ecological integrity.
Oil and gas drilling, mining, agriculture, climate change, weed invasions and altered fire regimes have led to its dubious distinction of being one of North America’s most threatened landscapes and an increasingly challenging place for wildlife to survive and thrive.
A back-and-forth of inconsistent policy making and implementation, sadly, has only added to the challenges the greater sage grouse faces and is a testament to why BLM cannot miss this moment.
First, in 2015, BLM, in coordination with western states and other federal land management agencies, published its initial version of the greater sage grouse strategy that applied a suite of conservation measures to public lands across the west. These plans were momentous for the sage grouse, as they limited disturbance within the most important sage grouse habitats. The 2015 plans, while not perfect, at least gave the sage grouse a fighting chance.
Only four short years later, however, under a new presidential administration, BLM reversed course and, in a second plan, put the kibosh on implementing entire sections of the 2015 plans and gutted other sections to allow for more oil, gas and other types of development.
Now the BLM is preparing to approve a third plan that may prove to be even less protective than the initial one in 2015.
This third version, as currently drafted, leaves the crucial mating, nesting and brood-rearing habitats so important for the long-term survival of the sage grouse vulnerable, and thus seems to offer scant hope of curbing the grouse’s slide toward extinction. As several sage grouse scientists recently pointed out, it’s hard to imagine that the current planning effort will achieve sage grouse conservation without significant revisions.
There’s also a bigger picture to consider. The loss and fragmentation of the Sagebrush Sea is devastating not only for the greater sage grouse, but also for the hundreds of other species of concern — like the pronghorn antelope, sage thrasher and Brewer’s sparrow — that live in this threatened biome. Some wildlife like the pygmy rabbit, which was petitioned for Endangered Species Act protections last year, are found nowhere else. As goes the sagebrush, so goes the species that depend upon it.
This means that strong greater sage grouse protection plans will help an array of wildlife. Indeed, it will help all of us because a healthy Sagebrush Sea supports agriculture, mitigates wildfire risk and provides myriad other benefits to humans. This is likely why a July 2024 poll showed that 9 out of 10 western voters regarded efforts to protect the greater sage grouse and its habitat as important and 70% support restricting development to support long-term habitat conservation.
The sage grouse is running out of time and cannot afford more rounds of ineffectual planning. We strongly urge the BLM to finalize a plan that protects and connects crucial sage grouse habitats across its range and makes up for the mistakes of the past. In doing so, BLM can save the Sagebrush Sea and all the creatures and communities that call it home.
This could well be the sage grouse’s last chance.
(Vera Smith) Vera Smith is a senior federal lands policy analyst with Defenders of Wildlife based in Missoula, Montana.
Vera Smith is a senior federal lands policy analyst with Defenders of Wildlife based in Missoula, Montana.
(Megan Mueller) Megan Mueller is conservation biologist with Rocky Mountain Wild based in Parowan, Utah.
Megan Mueller is a conservation biologist with Rocky Mountain Wild based in Parowan, Utah.
The Salt Lake Tribune is committed to creating a space where Utahns can share ideas, perspectives and solutions that move our state forward. We rely on your insight to do this. Find out how to share your opinion here, and email us at voices@sltrib.com.