Comments about ‘Grouse decision could dampen oil drilling’

They are no more endangered than the sage they romp through! This is nothing but an attempt to lock up more land from drilling.

"Salazar said that split decision buys time for states, ranchers and the energy industry to work together to avoid perhaps the need for listing by taking voluntary action now to protect the bird and its dwindling habitat."

Note to DOI, that's what we've been doing.

No surprise that Rob Bishop reacted in the most hyperbolic manner possible. This decision means that all parties must sit down at the table and have a meaningful discussion before action is taken. But Rob wants to take his toys and go home - and honestly, I'm perfectly OK with him doing that, because I'd prefer to discuss things with adults.

BLM policy says that candidate species will be treated as if they are listed. So, land management should reflect this. Some of the states with large connected areas of habitat will see less restriction, while those with extreme habitat fragmentation will need equally extreme changes if the grouse is to survive. Washington state sagegrouse need immediate help. This was purely a political decision, the biology and ecology of the species scream for full listing. To just comment based on your own selfish interests is lame, study the issue and then comment. What will happen now, is nothing will likely change, BLM will continue to purposely manage for extinction. There will be another lawsuit, and that judge will force listing just as happened with the spotted owl.

The decline of the Grouse came during the Fifties and sixties throughout the intermountain west at about the same time......There has not been any specific action taken that has "allowed Grouse to increase"..........Noone seems to want to examine the real cause of their decline because they view this as a perfect excuse to limit use of public lands, restrict oil exploration and eliminate grazing.......The birds have increased the last few years but again nobody wants to explore the reasons why........The oil industry or the grazing cannot be blamed for the decline because it took place at a time when there wasn't alot of exploration and it also followed large reductions in grazing numbers......

Only in the USA do we put the interests of birds and other critters ahead of the interests of people. The bible states that people are to have dominion over the earth. This has to change!

"Dominion" is a badly translated word in the KJV Bible. Replace it with "stewardship" and you'll get something much closer to the original intent.

In fairness to the translators of the KJV, what dominion meant 400 years ago and what it means now aren't quite the same. The King didn't just have power over the land, he also had responsibility to protect and preserve it for his heirs, and theirs.

Humans aren't stupid, we can mange for both grouse and human needs. What is stupid is to just blindly support industry while things go extinct. You are basically just arguing for max profits vs. profits at the expense of an entire species.

No problem. We can allways get our 'stuff' from other countries. Print a few more billions.

I believe "populations of (INSERT SPECIES NAME HERE) are strong enough that they need no protection and contended that the administration is just seeking another tool to prevent use and development of public lands."

Rob, the oil and gas lobby need their template back.

Nothing better than sage Grouse roasted on a spit, with rosemary, salt, pepper, and put some cut-up apples and onions inside the chest cavity. Better than chicken, a little sweeter than pheasant. Mmmmmm.

To-They're Delicious! | 11:47 a.m
That's one more valid reason to get their population up and thriving, and it benefits people too, making it a win-win. If it's a game species, having lots and lots of them is in lots of peoples' interest as well as in the birds'.

To-They're Delicious! | 11:47 a.m
That's one more valid reason to get their population up and thriving, and it benefits people too, making it a win-win. If it's a game species, having lots and lots of them is in lots of peoples' interest as well as in the birds'.

The funny thing is if the evil federal government ended grazing not only would grouse increase in numbers, so would elk, deer, antelope and bison. I forgot trout. This would be terrible?

I've seen ranchers out west kill them anytime they see them. Cattle and sheep, although not fond of sagebrush will eat it during hard winters.

Just remember all of this piffle about sage grouse and drilling (it's ridiculous to think that low-impact drilling would harm sage grouse!) when you're paying $7 a gallon gas, and the "Pelosi Premium" at the pump. But then again, Obama once praised the fact that gasoline would be very expensive. The Religion of Extreme Environmentalism is killing our economy and way of life, and energy security.

500 million Europeans get by just fine despite 'gas' prices near $9 a US gallon on average. Don't give me the "Europe is so small compared with the USA arguments. The inhabited portion of the USA is only slightly larger than the current European Union.

The Europeans have simply invested better in public transportation and drive more sensible cars. They don't heat their houses to 75 degrees in the winter or cool them to 65 degrees in the summer.

The standard of living is higher in much of Europe as it is in the United States as well. Take a look at the Human Development Index on the OECD website. They aren't exactly suffering in Europe!

Re: basinboy
"Only in the USA do we put the interests of birds and other critters ahead of the interests of people. The bible states that people are to have dominion over the earth."

It's quite marvelous that you know the mind of God and can channel his thoughts on land management. Do you also stone your children when they are troublesome? Do you think "dominion" means we should feel free to destroy one of God's creatures forever for any reason at all? Or do you think it might be reasonable to be conservative and try to determine the best way to balance land management and environmental health? Or are you one of those who believes destroying God's Earth will hasten the End of the World and Jesus' return?

It's not about Sage Grouse; it's about ecosystem health; ecosystems are what provide us with clean air, water, and food--things your children might need. Sage Grouse do not survive only on sagebrush--read about them and you will be able to have an intelligent discussion about the issues. It's OK to believe in progress, honor God's creation, and engage in thoughtful planning.