(Sage Grouse.  Photo:  U.S. Bureau of Land Management)

The sage-covered rangeland of the western U.S. provides a “core area” of habitat for the sage grouse.  Already threatened in Wyoming, the bird could soon become an endangered species whose protection could slow down renewable energy and other developments.

Last summer, Field Supervisor Brian Kelly, of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service said,

“ . . . constructing wind farms in core areas, even for research purposes, prior to demonstrating it can be done with no impact to sage grouse, negates the usefulness of the “core area concept” as a conservation strategy and brings into question whether adequate regulatory mechanisms are in place to protect the species.”

From the perspective of wildlife protection, endangered species’ health is an indicator of sustainable human impact, and we might infer from Kelly that policy regarding land use ought to reflect that wisdom.

(Image:  Dr. M. Schroeder, Washington Department of Wildlife)

For the last five years, it has been debated whether the sage grouse should be considered endangered.  The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service said “nay”, environmental groups chimed in with an “aye”. 

In 2007, Wyoming Game and Fish published guidelines for management of sage grouse habitat, essentially saying that “sagebrush habitats are part of a dynamic ecosystem that has been altered by natural and human-caused actions.”

Wind energy, oil and gas, road building, and grazing are activities that fragment and degrade sage grouse habitats.  Natural disturbances can include wildfire, drought, disease, and predators.  Then there are some factors that are harder to evaluate, like changes in extreme climatic conditions and invasive species.

Sage grouse make use of a vast majority of Wyoming’s central land base, and many other states on either side of the Rockies.

“It’s a lose, lose, lose for everyone involved if the bird gets listed,” said Press Secretary Jonathan Green of the Wyoming Governor’s Office, referring to the additional restrictions that would result from new endangered species protection. A decision is anticipated from USFWS in February.

“It’s all about minimizing those [human] impacts,” said Green, “to keep those habitats as undisturbed as possible,” which would “hopefully stave off an Endangered Species Act listing.”

Wyoming Governor Dave Freudenthal (D) issued an executive order in August 2008, for state agencies to focus on “maintenance and enhancement” of sage grouse’s greater habitats and core areas. Which, really, is the way these things are supposed to work - fix the habitat before populations crash, rather than complaining about the law once it’s already too late.

(Image:  Wyoming Game and Fish Department)

At a time when Americans need as much economic stimulus as they can get, there are many who fear that having another endangered species on our rangelands would stunt that growth.  President Obama just hammered home the point of job creation and energy industry growth in his second State of the Union speech.

Obama’s hard driving speech left a bitter taste in many mouths (others found it tangy, but sweet).  While he emphasized job creation and clean energy, in some places that won’t be easy.  States like Wyoming continue to agitate for stronger states’ rights.

Governor Freudenthal said yesterday,

We’ve adopted plenty of resolutions; we’ve given plenty of speeches, calling on the federal government to limit its power – and all to no avail. It’s time we got serious.

And it’s not even clear that an endangered species designation would stop the worst environmental offenders - well-entrenched industries like coal and natural gas would probably continue to proliferate despite new regulations, as they can afford to lobby hard in the halls of government.

On the other hand, the American Wind Energy Association’s CEO Denise Bode today released a statement commending the President’s address.

“The wind energy industry applauds the President’s emphasis on job creation. Under the President’s leadership, the Recovery Act saved 40,000 wind jobs. The industry now looks forward to working with the President to put in place the policies—including a national Renewable Electricity Standard—which will create thousands more jobs, including in manufacturing. A Renewable Electricity Standard (RES) with strong, aggressive near-term targets is the best way to provide the certainty needed for businesses to expand domestic wind manufacturing.”

Indeed, all species are connected to one another in the great ecological web.  Hopefully it won’t come down to a situation where people once again find themselves questioning whether they’re losing out on jobs to some dang old little bird.