Greater Sage Grouse Advocates Say New Federal Plan Imperils Habitat in North Dakota

(Photo by Bob Wick/U.S. Bureau of Land Management via Flickr via the North Dakota Monitor)

(North Dakota Monitor) – The Bureau of Land Management  said that its decision to modify greater sage grouse land-use plans on about 65 million acres. The plan affects North Dakota.

The bureau said its actions support Trump administration orders “unleashing American energy” and advancing “national energy independence.” Acting Bureau of Land Management Director Bill Groffy said in a news release that the agency is “strengthening American energy security while ensuring the sage-grouse continues to thrive.”

Greater sage grouse are are known for their chunky bodies and mating dance. The bird has been eligible for Endangered Species Act protections since the early 2010s, according to the Arizona-based Center for Biological Diversity.

Instead of listing sage grouse as endangered, the federal government adopted revised land management plans in 2015 establishing limits on mining, transmission lines and other heavy industry operations within priority sage grouse habitat areas.