Interior secretary: No protection needed for bi-state greater sage grouse

A sage grouse in shown in this courtesy handout photo from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. (Courtesy)

CARSON CITY — The U.S. Fish &Wildlife Service has determined that the bi-state population of greater sage grouse found along the California-Nevada border does not require the protection of the Endangered Species Act, U.S. Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell said Tuesday.

Jewell joined the Undersecretary Robert Bonnie, Gov. Brian Sandoval, California Natural Resources Agency Secretary John Laird and other state and local partners to celebrate a conservation partner­ship on behalf of the bi-state greater sage grouse population.

Federal, state and private partners have come together to conserve key habitat and significantly reduce long-term threats to this distinct population segment of greater sage grouse, the officials said in an announcement in Reno.

A key factor in the decision not to list the bird was the development of The Bi-State Action Plan, a conservation plan developed by partners in the Bi-State Local Area Working Group over the past 15 years and secured with $45 million in funding.

That adds to nearly $30 million worth of conservation work that the U.S. Department of Agriculture and other partners have completed to implement the plan.

“Thanks in large part to the extra­ordinary efforts of all the partners in the working group to address threats to greater sage grouse and its habitat in the bi-state area, our biologists have determined that this population no longer needs ESA protection,” Jewell said.

“What’s more, the collaborative, science-based efforts in Nevada and California are proof that we can conserve sagebrush habitat across the West while we encourage sustainable economic development.”

Sandoval said: “Today’s announcement highlights the critical partnerships that must exist for our conservation strategies to be effective and demonstrate that sage grouse and economic development can co-exist in both the bi-state area and across the range of the greater sage grouse.”

Contact Sean Whaley at swhaley@reviewjournal.com or 775-687-3900. Find him on Twitter: @seanw801.