BLM Sage-grouse plans

In 2015 the BLM adopted more than 70 management plans to safeguard the landscapes on which greater sage-grouse and more than 350 other species rely for survival and which also sustain the West's rural economies. We worked with partners to revise these plans in 2019 to build flexibility in coordinating various states' wildlife management laws and policies.

Following court orders enjoining the 2019 updates, we have been managing sage-grouse habitat on BLM-managed public lands according to the plans adopted in 2015. Since then, sage-grouse populations have continued to decline, and recent science shows that we need to once again update our plans to allow decisive action across state boundaries to achieve lasting benefits for sage-grouse and sagebrush habitat.

Now, we have proposed alternatives for strengthening these plans, informed by the best-available science and input from local, state, federal and Tribal partners. 

The proposed alternatives build on the most successful components of the 2015 and 2019 plans, incorporate new sage-grouse conservation science and lessons learned, account for changing resource conditions, and balance consistent management across the range with flexibility to address on-the-ground conditions and policies specific to individual states. 
 

The draft environmental impact statement and proposed plan amendments were published on March 15, 2024. We are currently considering comments received during the 90-day public comment period that closed on June 13, 2024.  

Conservation Topics