March 14, 2024

DENVER – Western Energy Alliance responded today to the Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) new Draft Resource Management Plan and Environmental Impact Statement for Greater Sage-Grouse Rangewide Planning. The Biden Administration continues the back-and-forth attempts to manage the species, from the flawed plans issued by the Obama/Biden Administration in 2015, which the Alliance challenged in court, and the revised Trump Administration plans in 2019.

“Conservation of the sage grouse is a goal shared by the oil and natural gas industry, ranchers, states, and communities across the West. That goal is best achieved at the state level, not with a one-size-fits-all federal approach,” said Kathleen Sgamma, president of the Alliance. “This plan amendment is a beast, updating 77 land use plans across 10 states, which concerns me since it’s one approach versus the state-by-state approach of the Obama and Trump plans. As we read it, we’ll be looking to see how BLM accounts for the huge variation across states, as the sagebrush shrubland of Wyoming is different from the sagebrush steppe of Utah, among many other variations. Each state has different topographies, predation concerns, quality of habitat, etc. and a one-size-fits-all federal approach is not effective. We’ll be looking to see how well BLM has incorporated state plans and all the private, state, and federal conservation that has been ongoing for decades. It’s positive that the preferred alternative seems to be a blend between the other approaches and prior plans, which indicates that BLM is trying to find a workable balance.

“The Obama Administration’s sage-grouse plans ignored effective state efforts and conservation practices that are more effective than top-down federal plans, and we were compelled to legally challenge them. The 2019 federal plans, in contrast, incorporated state plans and included collaborative input from states, counties, conservation groups, and productive land users. We’ve been hearing from BLM that this latest iteration will combine elements of each, so we’re looking to see if the correct balance has been achieved. The 67 million acres across the West covered by this plan includes significant high potential oil and natural gas resources.

"Our member companies work cooperatively with the states and federal land managers to protect the Greater Sage-Grouse. Besides strictly implementing measures to coexist with them, such as timing stipulations during brooding and breeding periods, sound abatement, and buffers around leks, many companies engage in voluntary mitigation measures, commit to additional protections, and partner with conservation groups to enhance the species. As a result, we’re looking carefully at the draft plan to ensure BLM recognizes that success and doesn’t overly restrict oil and natural gas development.”

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