Energy

Challenge:

Photo credit: Cameron Davidson

Increases in oil and gas development on public lands managed by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and the U.S. Forest Service — and attendant losses in hunting and fishing opportunity — have concerned many of us who hunt, fish and appreciate the outdoors. In recent years, companies have moved aggressively to tap oil and gas reserves in states such as Colorado, Montana, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming. From 1996 to 2007, nearly 26 million acres of the West were leased for energy development — an area comparable in size to the state of Virginia. The federal government has moved quickly to meet this increased demand for the development of public land and is doing so at an unprecedented rate, often without taking the necessary precautions to meet the needs of fish and wildlife populations.

Unfortunately, many of the locations pressured for oil and gas development also hold some of the nation's best hunting for mule deer, elk, pronghorn and sage grouse, plus blue-ribbon fishing for cutthroat, rainbow and brown trout. Hastily developed energy projects show that oil and gas extraction can dramatically affect fish and game populations if their needs aren't studied and met before, during and after the development process. (Read more about potential impacts of energy development on fisheries in the Rocky Mountain West.)

Strategy:

From the legendary mule deer country of Wyoming's Atlantic Rim to the blue-ribbon trout fishery on Montana's Beaverhead River, the TRCP is working to conserve your hunting and fishing traditions by ensuring that energy development is balanced with the needs of fish and wildlife.

The TRCP's approach to balanced energy development is guided by a team of biologists and experts, the TRCP Fish, Wildlife and Energy Working Group (FWEWG). By combining the science-based expertise of the FWEWG with an active network of sportsmen, TRCP's energy staff is working with hunters and anglers throughout the West to conserve our outdoor traditions by supporting responsible energy development.

As part of this process, the FWEWG has developed a set of principles to guide energy development on public lands. "FACTS for Fish and Wildlife ” calls on the federal government and energy industry to increase funding, accountability, coordination, transparency and science — the FACTS — when making decisions on whether and how to allow energy development on lands that belong to all Americans.

To request copies of TRCP's FACTS brochure to distribute at a sportsmen's meeting or conference, please contact Steve Belinda, associate director of science and policy for the TRCP Center for Western Lands.

A comprehensive poll of hunters and anglers conducted in 2007 by the TRCP found strong support for responsible energy development on Western public lands, done in a way that protects and conserves natural resources for today and future generations.

The TRCP is a leader of the coalition Sportsmen for Responsible Energy Development, which is working to strike a balance between energy development and conservation in the West. Learn more.

Action:

To ensure that sportsmen are represented in management decisions that could affect where and how they pursue their passions, the TRCP has developed the Sportsmen Values Mapping Project (SVM). The project, which captures sportsmen's input to delineate important hunting and fishing areas, complements critical habitat maps already in use by federal and state agencies. It shows politicians and decision-makers the access opportunities sportsmen value the most and want to see managed for the future and continued use of hunting and fishing.

Learn more about the TRCP Sportsmen Values Mapping project.

The TRCP also employs legal strategies to compel better management by federal agencies. The prospect of such action has caused agencies to employ more effective fish and wildlife conservation measures.

In June 2008, the TRCP filed suit in U.S. District Court against the Department of the Interior over its mishandling of energy development on the Pinedale Anticline natural gas development project in southwestern Wyoming.

Learn more about the TRCP's action on the Pinedale Anticline.

In August 2007, the TRCP filed suit in U.S. District Court against the Interior Department for its mishandling of a process that cleared the way for rapidly accelerated energy development on public lands in south-central Wyoming in an area known as the Atlantic Rim.

Learn more about the TRCP's action on the Atlantic Rim.

Public lands are a valuable resource for millions of hunters and anglers. But too often these lands are not managed with sportsmen in mind. The time has come for us to raise our voices together. Join Hunters and Anglers for Responsible Development.

For more information, contact:

Steve Belinda — Associate Director of Policy and Science, TRCP Center for Western Lands
Bill Geer — Director, TRCP Center for Western Lands
Joel Webster — Associate Director for Campaign management, TRCP Center for Western Lands
Bennett Brown — New Mexico Field Representative, TRCP Center for Western Lands
Nicholas Payne — Colorado Field Representative, TRCP Center for Western Lands
Katie McKalip — Associate Director of Communications, TRCP Center for Western Lands