Protecting sage grouse protects hunting, agriculture and other traditional economies that are essential to the Western way of life, according to a Sublette County conservation group focused on energy development.

Linda Baker, executive director of the Upper Green River Alliance, made the comments after Interior Secretary Ken Salazar placed the sage grouse on the candidate list for Endangered Species Act protection Friday.

“I think that it’s important for the states to realize that this is more about the health of all traditional economies that depend on the same places where sage grouse live,” Baker said. “Agriculture and wildlife-based recreation such as hunting and outfitting, these are part of the Western landscape as much as the sage grouse is.”

When sagebrush is protected, so are water quality and wildlife habitat, Baker said.

Baker said she sees hope in the efforts of some companies to use oil and gas extraction techniques such as directional drilling and liquids gathering systems that have a smaller impact on the environment.

“Some of these companies have figured out how to do a better job,” she said. “It’s not an onerous responsibility, but it makes sense to maintain these places where we all depend on the water and the air.”

Industry representatives say they’re happy that the sage grouse wasn’t formally placed under Endangered Species Act protection but they remain concerned that the bird’s candidate status could mean more restrictions for development.

Industry versus protection

Kathleen Sgamma, director of government affairs for the Independent Petroleum Association of Mountain States, said the decision reflects the efforts by local communities, the states, ranchers and energy companies to protect sage grouse.

“Wyoming is ahead of the game in that they already have the core habitat mapped out,” she said. “That needs to happen ... in other states.”

Still, Sgamma said the bird’s new status could mean that communities within core habitat areas could be disproportionately affected.

“We feel that sage grouse and energy development has been coexisting for quite some time,” she said. “We’re concerned that BLM will introduce more restrictive policies ... unnecessarily restrictive policies.”

For the most part, conservation groups applauded Salazar’s announcement, calling it a wake-up call for states and industry to make changes. However, one group, Western Watersheds, sued over the decision Monday, saying the bird should be granted formal protections.

Louise Lasley, public lands director for the Jackson Hole Conservation Alliance, said the sage grouse listing is probably inevitable.

“The rate of energy development and sprawl should show us that we can’t sit back, relax and not continue or even expand these effective and protective measures,” she said.

What the listing means

Laurie Milford, executive director of the Wyoming Outdoor Council, said the decision sends a strong message that the sage grouse is, indeed, in trouble. She said Wyoming, in particular, has done a good job identifying and implementing needed protections so far.

“I suspect that what the agency is trying to say here is that states like Wyoming and Montana ... that the agency trusts them to continue that hard work,” she said. “I’ve been pretty encouraged by the Wyoming state plan. It was proactive. It got out in front of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service [announcement] that everyone knew was coming.”

In 2005, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service determined endangered species protection wasn’t warranted for sage grouse. A court later ordered the Fish and Wildlife Service to revisit the decision.

While candidate species are not technically protected under the act, the designation means endangered species protection is warranted and more resources will be available to wildlife managers to help protect the bird and its habitat. The designation also means the Fish and Wildlife Service will conduct regular reviews of the bird’s status.

A team of 38 scientists worked on the analysis, Salazar said.

“The current sage grouse sagebrush habitat is 160 million acres,” he said. “That is half its historic range. It will continue to decline ... in the coming years.”

Still, Salazar said the sage grouse population is relatively stable, despite threats such as invasive species and energy development.

“The listing is warranted but precluded at this time because of other priority listings throughout the service,” he said.