Judge blocks drilling plans in 2 states, citing bird habitat
A judge has halted plans for oil and gas drilling in vast areas of Wyoming and Montana, citing concerns about a sagebrush-dwelling bird
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.A judge has halted plans for oil and gas drilling on vast areas of Wyoming and Montana citing concerns about a sagebrush-dwelling bird.
The U.S. Bureau of Land Management didn't adequately consider how the drilling would affect the greater sage grouse, nor an option to defer drilling in the bird's prime habitat, Idaho U.S. District Judge Ronald E. Bush ruled Wednesday.
Bush ordered more study of potential effects on the bird before drilling may proceed.
The drilling would occur on over 600 square miles (1,500 square kilometers) of federal land scattered across the energy-rich states. The Bureau of Land Management auctioned off hundreds of leases in sage grouse habitat in four sales in 2017.
Sage grouse are a chicken-sized, primarily ground-dwelling bird whose numbers have fallen significantly from the millions that inhabited the U.S. West in frontier times. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service determined in 2010 that the bird deserved special protection but said in 2015 that conservation efforts led by Wyoming made that unnecessary.
The environmental group that sued over the leases praised Bush's ruling.
“This ruling sends a very strong message that the BLM can no longer lease public lands for fossil fuel development without weighing the outcomes for sensitive lands and wildlife,” Erik Molvar, executive director of Western Watersheds Project, said in a statement Thursday.
BLM spokesman Brad Purdy declined to comment, citing agency policy not to discuss ongoing litigation. The agency’s allies in the case included the Western Energy Alliance industry group and the state of Wyoming, where Republican Gov. Mark Gordon was weighing whether to appeal.
“The governor is dismayed by Judge Bush’s ruling but is pleased that the leases have not been vacated," Gordon spokesman Michael Pearlman said by email.
The ruling comes amid a federal oil and gas leasing moratorium imposed by President Joe Biden s administration while it studies the effects on climate change.
___
Follow Mead Gruver at https://twitter.com/meadgruver