PRESS RELEASE: Coloradans Applaud BLM Plan to Minimize Oil and Gas Impacts to Wildlife Habitat

Two mule deer facing one another look towards the camera.
Mule Deer in Browns Park National Wildlife Refuge with the Diamond Breaks Wilderness Study Area in the background. Image courtesy of John Mullen.

Coloradans Applaud BLM Plan to Minimize Oil and Gas Impacts to Wildlife Habitat

New plan can be a model for reducing impacts to critical migration corridors and other important habitat

Contact: Emily Diamond-Falk, ediamond-falk@pewtrusts.org; 202-336-4980

Grand Junction, CO (July 18, 2024) – The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) today released its proposed Final Big Game Resource Management Plan Amendment which covers 8.3 million surface acres plus 4.7 million additional acres of mineral estate extending to every Colorado BLM Field Office and to every corner of the state.  BLM is taking the important step to implement landscape-level protections for big game habitat and update its oil and gas program in Colorado. so as to complement and support existing state policy, science, and management

“As stewards of our public lands, the Bureau of Land Management plays an important role in supporting state wildlife objectives by shaping how our public lands are managed, for what purposes, and in what manner,” said Alison Gallensky, conservation geographer at Rocky Mountain Wild. “Protecting big game also protects habitat for the important diversity of animal and plant species found here in Colorado. I appreciate the steps the Bureau is taking to protect big game in this plan and encourage them to consider conservation of big game in their future management decisions beyond oil and gas.”

This proposed final plan will impact all existing BLM land use plans in the state and provide guidance intended to protect wildlife habitat by defining limits on energy development that would incorporate conservation measures for important big game habitat, specifically for elk, mule deer, pronghorn, and bighorn sheep.

John Rader, public lands program manager at San Juans Citizens Alliance, added, “Public lands provide critical habitat for Colorado’s big game herds, and the BLM has a responsibility to ensure it remains connected and functional. We support the BLM’s efforts to align with state policy and mitigate impacts to big game habitat from oil and gas development. We also stress the need to avoid impacts to habitat in the first place, and to comprehensively address broader threats like renewable energy and recreation development. A holistic approach is necessary to conserve our declining big game herds.” 

BLM lands are critically important to support wildlife migrations and conserve a range of high priority habitat types across Colorado. According to BLM, 53 percent of BLM lands provide priority habitat for elk and 48 percent provide priority habitat for mule deer. Colorado wildlife officials say elk herd numbers may not be sustainable over the next 20 years in certain areas where human development is increasing. 

“The proposed Big Game Resource Management Plan Amendment is a big deal for Colorado’s wildlife,” said Pat Lane, a senior officer for The Pew Charitable Trusts’ U.S. conservation project. “When finalized, the Bureau of Land Management will have a new roadmap for conserving the habitat of the hundreds of thousands of elk, deer, and pronghorn that live and migrate across the state—and a model that it can apply to other states as well. The work of conserving Colorado’s migrating wildlife is far from done, but we look forward to the BLM working closely with the state, Tribes, and stakeholders to address the myriad challenges that these animals face.”

This planning effort can serve as a model for how the BLM and other land managers can collaborate with state agencies and sync federal and state plans and policies to facilitate responsible management of multiple uses on public lands beyond oil and gas. While the plan focuses on oil and gas and not several other key drivers of change to wildlife habitat, there are additional opportunities: to further address critical issues facing migratory wildlife, including: 

  • Updates to the 2012 Western Solar Plan: The updated Western Solar Plan across 11 Western states including Colorado is expected to be published this summer and will accommodate new science and technological advances. Diverse stakeholders are urging the BLM to take a similar approach to protect big game habitats
  • Improving Recreation Infrastructure: BLM lands across the West including Colorado are struggling with the wildlife habitat impacts from increased recreation. In 2021, the Colorado Department Parks and Wildlife issued the Colorado’s Guide to Planning Trails with Wildlife in Mind, which offers science-based recommendations for habitat-friendly recreation trails. The BLM should follow this new model and implement these recommendations.

The BLM will now begin a 30-day protest period and a 60-day consistency review by the Governor Polis. Once review periods close, the BLM will be able to sign a Record of Decision and finalize the plan.

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