Feds’ Sage Grouse Plan Slashes Obama-Era Habitat Protections (1)

Oil and gas drilling, mining, and other development activities will be allowed in greater sage grouse habitat areas previously off-limits, under rule changes that the Trump administration finalized.

In a move that industry groups applauded, the Bureau of Land Management signed records of decision March 15 for its plans to protect the greater sage grouse. Environmental groups, meanwhile, said they are considering their next steps.

The final resource management plans scale back conservation measures approved by the Obama administration in September 2015 for the ground-dwelling, chicken-sized bird, an indicator species that faces threats from energy development, fires, road ...