New Project in Lyon and Mineral counties planned to help bi-state sage grouse
Submitted by editor on Tue, 05/12/2015 - 12:55pm
In a continuing effort to help increase the population of Bi-State sage grouse, the Nevada Department of Wildlife is partnering with the U.S. Forest Service to address major threats to the population within an area located in Lyon and Mineral counties.
The East Walker Landscape Habitat Improvement Project is part of the Bi-State Action Plan, a strategy to provide for the long-term conservation of the Bi-State sage-grouse and its habitat. The project, in part, calls for the removal of pinon and juniper trees in a 20,400-acre area located approximately 15 miles north of Bridgeport, California. NDOW has committed to contributing $330,000 for projects such as this in the next year alone.
“This is certainly not the first project of its kind to help conserve and improve habitat for the Bi-State sage grouse and it won’t be the last,” said Mark Freese, Habitat Biologist for NDOW. “But this project is fairly significant in its scope relative to prior projects.”
Projects like this and others helped convince the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (USFS) that the Bi-State sage grouse is not in need of extended protections under the Endangered Species Act. Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell made this announcement on April 21 at the NDOW Headquarters in Reno.
"What this has shown is that despite the stresses we feel on the landscape here, particularly around drought and wildfire and other stresses that impact this part of the world, we can still create and find habitat that supports sage grouse," Jewell said during her speech.
The East Walker project is just one in a long list of successful projects being developed and implemented in a partnership with other state and federal agencies in the ongoing effort to improve or expand habitat for the bi state sage grouse. Another such project is the Sweetwater Flat Pinyon and Juniper Reduction Project that took place on the north end of Sweetwater Flat in Lyon County.
NDOW worked with the USFS and provided funding for the project that removed pinyon trees from around crucial sage-grouse lek locations and nesting habitat. Also, working closely with USFS in the China Camp area near Aurora, NDOW provided funding to remove pinyon and juniper trees within historic sagebrush dominated habitats. NDOW has also been involved with several projects in the Pine Nut Mountains including fire rehabilitation and habitat enhancement projects.
“The list goes on,” said Shawn Espinosa, upland game biologist for NDOW and one of the center figures in the fight to save the sage grouse. “It’s a testament to what people can accomplish when they are all working towards the same goal. We wouldn’t be where we are today without all of the cooperation and help from our partners like US Fish and Wildlife, Bureau of Land Management, Natural Resources Conservation Service, Local Area Working Group, Sagebrush Ecosystem Technical Team and the Hawthorne Army Depot.”
While Espinosa was pleased with the decision not to list the sage grouse, he is also quick to point out the fight is far from over. “It is important for everyone to understand this decision can be revisited at any time. Challenges will arise and it’s up to us to continue to implement conservation actions and projects that demonstrate a positive effect on the Bi-State sage grouse population."
The Nevada Department of Wildlife (NDOW) protects, restores and manages fish and wildlife, and promotes fishing, hunting, and boating safety. NDOW’s wildlife and habitat conservation efforts are primarily funded by sportsmen’s license and conservation fees and a federal surcharge on hunting and fishing gear. Support wildlife and habitat conservation in Nevada by purchasing a hunting, fishing, or combination license.
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