Sage Grouse Will Not Be Listed as Endangered or Threatened

by Amy Judd | March 5, 2010 at 10:29 am

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Sage Grouse Not Listed as Endangered is a Bonus for Energy Industries

The Interior Department ruled on Friday that the Sage Grouse will not be added to the endangered species list or the threatened species list.

They will however add it to the list of candidates for federal protection, reports the Associated Press.

The rule that the bird will not be added to the endangered or threatened list is good news for the energy industries as they want to develop in the region where the Sage Grouse lives, and if the bird was more protected they would not be able to do as much development as they want.

The finding validates years of effort by some Western states to map the birds' sagebrush habitat and take other steps to prevent a sage grouse listing.

Mark Salvo, director of the “sagebrush sea” campaign for WildEarth Guardians, told BusinessWeek that due to energy development, farming, livestock grazing and people riding in off-road vehicles, the amout of room that the birds are able to use for their habitat has been dropped to 18th century levels.

Conservationists are not saying this is a win or loss for anyone, as they see the benefit that the Sage Grouse species is starting to get some attention, but insist that it is not a full step in the right direction.

The Sage Grouse is found in North America, in 11 Western states and in Western Canada.