Greater Sage-Grouse Avoids ESA Listing

Sep 24 2015
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Governmental Affairs, The Americas

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The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (“Service”) announced on Tuesday, September 22, 2015, that it would not list the greater sage-grouse under the Endangered Species Act (“ESA”).

This decision represents a change of direction for the Service, which announced in 2010 that the grouse was “warranted for listing”, but the Service now says “new information about the status of the species, potential threats, regulatory mechanisms, and conservation efforts indicates that listing is not warranted.”

Specifically, the Service determined that “the primary threats to greater sage-grouse have been ameliorated by conservation efforts implemented by Federal, State, and private landowners.” The Service identified state regulations, new federal regulations, conservation efforts, and advancements in oil and gas technologies as having reduced threats to the grouse “in approximately 90 percent of the breeding habitat through avoidance and minimization measures.”

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