BLM Hosts Gateway West Sage-Grouse

Public Information Meetings in Wyoming and Idaho

 CHEYENNE, WY – The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) will present information and answer questions about the sage-grouse habitat equivalency analysis (HEA) for the proposed Gateway West Transmission Line Project at two public information meetings in February in Wyoming and Idaho.  The HEA serves as one part of the Framework for Sage-Grouse Analysis for Interstate Transmission Lines, developed by the BLM, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Idaho Department of Fish and Game, and the Wyoming Game and Fish Department.

The meetings will be held as follows:

Today the Idaho Recreation Council and Chris/Lois Schwarzhoff, with the support of the Village of Yellow Pine and Big Creek Lodge and Outfitters, filed a Motion for Summary Judgment in the U.S. District Court for the District of Idaho, asking the Court to set aside and void the 2008 Travel Plan for motorized travel in the Payette National Forest.  The Plaintiffs are specifically challenging aspects of the Travel Plan that closed historic road use in the area of Big Creek and Yellow Pine.  Thank you for your interest in this case of great importance to rural Idaho communities and Idaho’s recreation users.

Today the Forest Service announced the final Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS) for the planning rule, bringing us one step closer to a new rule. It’s been a long journey since we published the Notice of Intent in December 2009 and asked for your help to develop a new planning rule. We’ve held over 63 public meetings across the country and received over 325,000 comments between our discussions on the NOI and the proposed rule and DEIS.  On behalf of Forest Service leadership and the Planning Rule Team, I want to thank each of you for your participation in this rule making effort to date.

*         Idaho Senator Monty Pearce is requesting a special hearing with both the house and the senate regarding the administration of Idaho’s winter feeding program for our ailing big game herds. He is proposing legislation that will ensure winter feeding dollars are solely used for preserving our big game and cannot be funneled back to the general fund.

The hearing date has been set for Friday, February 3rd at 1:00 PM in Boise.

We need every Idaho concerned Sportsman, hunter, huntress, rancher, Outfitter and concerned citizens to attend this hearing.

More details to follow but please make every attempt to attend this hearing!