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Utah Congressman Proposes Amendment To Prevent Sage Grouse Listing

The federal government decided not to list the sage grouse under the Endangered Species Act in 2015, under the assumption that states would pursue aggressive conservation actions.
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
/
Flickr Creative Commons
The federal government decided not to list the sage grouse under the Endangered Species Act in 2015, under the assumption that states would pursue aggressive conservation actions.
The federal government decided not to list the sage grouse under the Endangered Species Act in 2015, under the assumption that states would pursue aggressive conservation actions.
Credit U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service / Flickr Creative Commons
/
Flickr Creative Commons
The federal government decided not to list the sage grouse under the Endangered Species Act in 2015, under the assumption that states would pursue aggressive conservation actions.

Currently the sage grouse is not listed under the Endangered Species Act. And a bill before Congress  would prevent that from happening anytime in the next decade.

This isn’t the first time that Utah Representative Rob Bishop has tried to block the sage grouse from being listed. But his previous attempts were shot down. This year, the idea seems to be getting more traction. Brett Harti with theCenter for Biological Diversitysays if it passes, the amendment could have grave implications for sage grouse. 

"It unfortunately will probably mean that the states will feel like the pressure has been taken off to take any actions to protect the sage grouse," Harti says. 

Bishop’s office did not immediately return a request for comment. But in the past, he’s justified placing the amendment in a defense bill because he says if sage grouse are listed, it could  jeopardize military training operations in his home state. 

Harti says Endangered Species Act decisions should be informed by scientists, not Congress. 

"When Congress interferes with that by saying that you cannot take action, that’s really harmful--not only to that species but to the conservation of wildlife across the board."  

The amendment also includes language that would remove ESA protections for the American burying beetle

Democrats are fighting to strike the provision from the defense bill. 

Find reporter Amanda Peacher on Twitter @amandapeacher.

Copyright 2018 Boise State Public Radio

This story was produced by the Mountain West News Bureau, a collaboration between Wyoming Public Media, Boise State Public Radio in Idaho, Yellowstone Public Radio in Montana, KUER in Salt Lake City and KRCC and KUNC in Colorado.

Copyright 2020 Boise State Public Radio News. To see more, visit .

Amanda Peacher is an Arthur F. Burns fellow reporting and producing in Berlin in 2013. Amanda is from Portland, Oregon, where she works as the public insight journalist for Oregon Public Broadcasting. She produces radio and online stories, data visualizations, multimedia projects, and facilitates community engagement opportunities for OPB's newsroom.
Amanda Peacher
Amanda Peacher works for the Mountain West News Bureau out of Boise State Public Radio. She's an Idaho native who returned home after a decade of living and reporting in Oregon. She's an award-winning reporter with a background in community engagement and investigative journalism.