Utah reaps federal funds to restore habitat

Utah will receive $439,000 as part of a $3 million grant to Western states from the Interior Department to "improve the health and productivity of public lands."

Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne announced the grants Tuesday during a media teleconference. The amount is in addition to $22 million nationally for the program, the Healthy Lands Initiative, requested in President Bush's 2008 budget proposal.

"The Healthy Lands Initiative will help the BLM (Bureau of Land Management) fulfill its mission," which is crucial to the quality of life that residents of the West expect," Kempthorne said during the press conference.

"This is an important first step for the Bureau of Land Management to get a handle on some of the activities that are occurring on the land," said Henri Bisson, the agency's deputy director for operations and a former BLM state director for Utah.

The $3 million came from the present budget. It will be used for "on-the-ground work" that must be finished by the end of this fiscal year, he said. The federal government's fiscal year ends on Sept. 30.

To qualify, a project must have its environmental work finished, must have partners working with the federal government and must benefit either sagebrush habitat or the interface between wildlife habitat and energy developments.

"This is a lead-up to the '08 initiative," Kempthorne said. That year's budget for the Healthy Lands Initiative is expected to include $15 million for the BLM, $3 million for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and $5 million for the U.S. Geological Survey.

Efforts to focus attention on the interface between energy projects and wildlife habitat are intended to minimize damage to wildlife, particularly sage grouse populations. "I think the projects in Wyoming, Colorado, New Mexico and perhaps in Utah will all involve some efforts to impact some energy developments," Bisson said.

When a reporter asked where the $3 million is coming from, Bisson said, "When Congress passed the continuing (funding) resolution, they gave us some flexibility with the numbers." The $3 million is "not coming from any other specific BLM programs," he said.

Lola Bird, spokeswoman for the BLM state office in Salt Lake City, said the organization is excited to discover it will have more funding because of the initiative.

"This will allow us to get additional projects done during this fiscal year," she said. "A total of seven projects were selected to be funded" in Utah.