Sage Grouse

Greater Sage-grouse (GRSG) was a candidate species reviewed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) to determine listing status under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). As a direct outcome of the proposed ESA listing review, the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) initiated a draft Land Use Plan Amendment and Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) pertaining to the GRSG throughout their management zones within sage-grouse habitat. The State of Idaho engaged in similar efforts and submitted an Idaho Plan.

Sage -Grouse and Endowment Lands

As part of Idaho’s commitment to conserving sage-grouse, IDL developed conservation measures for state endowment trust land and IDL regulatory programs that complement the Sage-Grouse Plan for federal land management in Idaho. These measures were approved by the Land Board and Oil and Gas Commission in April 2015. Before it was approved, IDL collected comments on a draft plan from the public, including from natural resource industry user groups, environmental organizations, and relevant state and federal agencies.

Later in 2015, USFWS announced that listing sage-grouse under the ESA was “not warranted.” Shortly after, Governor Otter and the Idaho Legislature filed a lawsuit challenging the federal government’s process behind amendments to federal land-use plans.

In the fall of 2015, the Land Board reaffirmed its commitment to implementing its Sage-Grouse Conservation Plan despite the unknown outcome of the legal challenge to the federal government’s decision on Sage-grouse.

Important Documents

• Secretarial Order No. 3353 – Greater Sage-Grouse Conservation and Cooperation with Western States
• BLM – Idaho and Southwest Montana Sub Regional Sage Grouse documents and reports
• U.S. Forest Service – Greater Sage-grouse Record of Decision and Land Management Plan Amendments
• Memo – Land Board, April 21, 2015
• Memo – Oil & Gas Conservation Commission, April 23, 2015
• News Releases:
  Idaho Department of Lands outlines plan to protect sage-grouse habitat, Feb. 17, 2015
  Idaho rolls out additional measures to conserve sage grouse, April 23, 2015
• Fact Sheet and Key Elements of the Plan
• Acronyms & Glossary – From the BLM Draft EIS