Utah Leaders React to BLM Rules
Washington, D.C.—Governor Herbert and the Utah Congressional delegation issued the following statements today following the announcement of the Bureau of Land Management’s Final Environmental Impact Statements (FEIS) for land use plans to protect the greater sage-grouse.
“Our state has made significant investment and is fully committed to the conservation of sage-grouse,” said Governor Herbert. “While we will dig deeper into the proposal released today, we are already concerned that the federal agencies do not endorse certain vital conservation measures necessary for success in the Utah environment. We will continue working with the federal agencies to find the best way to advance conservation planning in Utah.”
“I am deeply disappointed by the federal government’s Final Environmental Impact Statement,” Senator Hatch said. “Our state has spent years coordinating with key stakeholders to forge a plan that accommodates the need to protect the bird’s habitat with Utahns’ desire to develop our resources in a responsible manner. Utah deserves the opportunity to implement our effective, locally-driven solution. Instead, the Obama administration has embraced a plan focused more on blocking development than on forging a workable consensus to ensure the long-term sustainability of sage-grouse habitat. I urge the Bureau of Land Management and the Forest Service to reconsider this misguided move and to work with—not against—our state on this vital matter.”
Senator Lee said: "The state of Utah has invested millions of dollars and coordinated across numerous stage agencies to put forth a plan that will protect the sage grouse and Utahns' access to public lands. This balance - between conservation, economic development, and recreational use of lands - is one that is best struck by the people living in affected communities, not federal bureaucrats."
Chairman Bishop said: “This is just flat out wrong. If the Administration really cares about the bird they will adopt the state plans as they originally said they would. The state plans work. This proposal is only about controlling land, not saving the bird. Our Committee has held hearings on how the federal agencies are not working with the states. When I became Chairman I held high hopes that this Administration would try to be more cooperative. This announcement is not cooperation; it is not collaboration, and it is not a solution. It is just wrong. I call on this Administration to work with the states and Congress. Together, we can solve this problem. Without working together, the Sage Grouse suffers and we fail.”
Rep. Chaffetz said: "State and local governments and private land owners are adequately equipped to development viable land management plans that preserve and improve the local environment. It is discouraging that years of hard work put forth by state and local governments and Utah landowners continues to be undercut and overlooked by federal officials who reside thousands of miles away."
Rep. Stewart said: “We’ve all witnessed the federal government’s poor track record of managing lands and species, which is why I’m disappointed that the BLM is mandating a federal Sage Grouse conservation plan instead of allowing Utah to manage it’s own state specific recovery plan. We all want to protect this beautiful bird, but our state and local communities have the expertise and passion to best manage this process.”
“Once again, the Obama Administration is undermining the authority of states to manage their own land, resources and wildlife,” said Representative Love. “Western states, including Utah, have been working in good faith with the federal government to avoid an Endangered Species Act listing of the Greater Sage-grouse. I am discouraged that the Administration has decided to pursue a course of action that impedes the progress the states have been making. I support Utah’s scientifically-based Greater Sage-grouse plan that conserves more than 90% of the state’s Greater Sage-grouse habitat and we are seeing the positive results of Utah’s investment and planning. The Administration needs to understand that it’s the states, not Washington, that know best how to manage their own resources.”
Background
Earlier today, BLM released Final Environmental Impact Statements (FEIS) for land use plans that will provide protection to the greater sage-grouse.
In 2010, the Department of Interior determined that that the greater sage-grouse warranted federal protections, but higher priorities precluded the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service from taking action. Since 2010, Utah has been working with other western states and federal resource management agencies to develop conservation objectives for this species. Representatives from Utah even participated on a task force and a technical team that took an in-depth look at how to ensure sage grouse would not need federal protections.
After several years of collaboration, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Director Dan Ashe released a memorandum in late 2014 stating that the areas his agency will be focusing on to protect sage grouse would be surface disturbances caused by oil and gas development, mining, and grazing. Environmentalists oppose all three of these activities and have worked to obstruct them from happening on federal lands.
The three objectives of the new conservation effort are:
The plan creates a new land designation called “General Habitat.” This designation expands the ability of federal land managers to slow or stop the development of resources on federal lands.
