May 7, 2024

A Short History of Conservation Collaboration in Nevada’s Ruby Mountains

Where we have been, and where we are going

The Ruby Mountains will always be a special place to me. I was first introduced to these incredible mountains and the wild they hold on a snowy November morning during the last weekend of the 1972 mule deer season. My brother-in-law’s family had hunted the Rubies many times, and it was with him and his younger brother that I first laid eyes on the mountain range that would fascinate me for the rest of my life.

Having arrived after dark late on a Friday night, we slept crammed like cordwood into my brother-in-law’s old 1959 Willys wagon. My first glimpse of the mountains at daybreak took my breath away. Being just a 15-year-old kid, I was awestruck by the beauty of the Rubies covered with six inches of fresh snow. My companions told me we should be well into the rut and this was going to be a weekend to remember.

We climbed, after a quick breakfast of chocolate chip cookies, to the top of a ridge where we could glass a huge basin filled with aspen groves intermixed with sagebrush, ceanothus, and bitterbrush. The small creeks were choked with aspens and beaver dams. As I looked into that snow-filled bowl, I spotted group after group of mule deer, six to ten or more in every little herd. Each group had a swollen-necked, rutting buck tending does. I had never seen anything like it, and honestly, haven’t seen anything quite like it since.

We looked below us and saw one of these small herds directly below us. The other two fellows were packing iron-sighted rifles, an old Lee Enfield .303 British and an even older Marlin lever action .30-30. I was carrying my Dad’s sporterized 1917 Enfield .30-06 topped with a 2.5 power scope. Since the deer were a bit far for their guns, they convinced me that I should take the shot.

With his mind on the does, the big four-by-four buck had no idea we were right above him. I rested on my knees, found the buck in the scope, and pulled the trigger. I was incredibly lucky that day and dropped a far better buck than a green kid like me deserved as a first deer. It took us several hours to drag that deer out the bottom through the beaver dams and downed aspen to where we could get to that old Willys.

I’m now honored that I have the opportunity to work to ensure that memories like this will continue to be made for others who admire the Ruby Mountains through my position at TRCP and the many partners who share a common vision for the future of this incredible landscape.

Conservation successes hardly ever happen overnight. Some take years, others take decades, and all the while organizations, decision makers, and engaged citizens work together for conservation measures that will maintain the high quality of life wild places provide.

The Ruby Mountains in northeastern Nevada is one such place where the work is still in progress, but progress is being made.

The Ruby Mountains support one of Nevada’s largest mule deer herds.

The Ruby Mountains stretch for nearly 100 miles in Elko County. These rugged, glacier-carved peaks and their cold, clear streams serve as a stronghold of native cutthroat trout and other wildlife, while providing an abundance of world-class public land opportunities for hunting, fishing, and other forms of outdoor recreation. They are also the origin of one of the most important big-game migration corridors in the state, utilized by one of its largest mule deer herds, and home to many other fish and wildlife species, including the Lahontan cutthroat trout.

The urgency for conservation safeguards began in 2017 when oil and gas exploration leases were requested on over 53,000 acres of U.S. Forest Service land. Over the next year, Humboldt Toiyabe Forest personnel analyzed potential impacts to the area, while at the same time, a groundswell of public opposition to development formed. When the public comment period on the proposal opened, thousands of individuals and organizations spoke out against the proposal.

Finally, in 2019, Forest Supervisor Bill Dunkelberger issued a no-leasing decision on the request. However, within days of that decision, expressions of interest were filedon an additional 88,000 acres, many of which were the same parcels previously denied. It became clear to TRCP and our partners that whoever was behind the requests for oil and gas leasing was not going away.

After hearing the many pleas to protect the iconic Ruby Mountains by denying requests to lease for oil and gas drilling, Nevada Senator Catherine Cortez Masto(D)introduced legislation to permanently withdraw the Ruby Mountains area of the Humboldt Toiyabe Forest from leasing for oil and gas development.

In a bipartisan move, Nevada Representative Mark Amodei (R) introduced a similar companion bill. The two bills have been reintroduced each session of Congress since 2019, including in 2023. Yet, despite many efforts, neither have gone to the floor of their respective chambers for a full vote. Both decision makers and the hunting, fishing, and conservation organizations that support the legislation have realized that the best chance of establishing the necessary safeguards is to incorporate the bills into a larger, compatible, multistate lands package. Unfortunately, Congress has provided no such opportunity.

Seeing the need for interim safeguards on the ground while a permanent approach waits to advance in Congress, Senators Cortez Masto and Jacky Rosen (D-NV) requested a 20-year administrative withdrawal from leasing by the Biden administration. In a series of letters to Secretary of Interior Deb Haaland in August and November 2023, the Senators asked the Secretary to take the necessary action for a withdrawal of approximately 350,000 acres from mineral development. Under theMineral Leasing Act of 1920, the U.S. Department of Interior is charged with administering oil and gas leasing on the nation’s forests, as well as Bureau of Land Management acres.

This action, and the related legislation, is supported by the Te-Moak Tribe of Western Shoshone of Nevada, who consider the area sacred ancestral land and whose reservation sits along the western flank of the Rubies. The Ruby Mountains are considered central to the lives of the Western Shoshone peoples.

In addition, Sportsmen for the Rubies, a coalition of 15 Nevada hunting and fishing groups, has supported bipartisan efforts to pass legislation permanently conserving the Rubies since 2019 and also supports the request for a temporary administrative mineral withdrawal.

So many hunting and fishing opportunities for Nevada sportsmen and women are tied to the wildness of the Ruby Mountains and the Ruby Lake National Wildlife Refuge. Because of these invaluable qualities, the diverse, bipartisan support of tribes, legislators, and citizens remains strong and will continue to take steps forward to protect the places Nevadans love to hunt and fish. The TRCP has been at the forefront of urging conservation measures for this landscape be established, and while we’ve already come a long way, we continue our refrain of action: to urge the Bureau of Land Management to take administrative action to withdraw the oil and gas resources from leasing within the Ruby Mountains and Ruby Lake Refuge to safeguard this truly unique landscape in Nevada. And ultimately for congress to pass the Ruby Mountains Protection Act.

To speak up for the Ruby Mountains, sign up below for our weekly newsletter that will keep you updated for opportunities to take action.

The TRCP is your resource for all things conservation. In our weekly Roosevelt Report, you’ll receive the latest news on emerging habitat threats, legislation and proposals on the move, public land access solutions we’re spearheading, and opportunities for hunters and anglers to take action. Sign up now.

This blog has been modified from an article first published by The Nevada Independent.

Photo Credit: J. Harsha

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by: Ryan Lockwood

posted in: Habitat and Clean Water

In the Arena: Jon “Hoss” Haas

TRCP’s “In the Arena” series highlights the individual voices of hunters and anglers who, as Theodore Roosevelt so famously said, strive valiantly in the worthy cause of conservation.

Jon “Hoss” Haas

Hometown: Phoenix, Arizona
Occupation: Television show host/producer, conservation director for the Mid-South Fly Fishers club, and fisheries advocate
Conservation credentials: Producing and hosting an Emmy-nominated angling show focused on conservation issues and serving in board and director roles for conservation organizations, including being a past board member and communications director for the Coastal Conservation Association Oregon.

Jon “Hoss” Haas is host and executive producer of Emmy-nominated “Hoss Off the Grid,” which invites viewers into the rush of adventure-destination sportfishing. He’s a hardcore lifetime fisherman, whose endeavors are framed by a conservation focus in which he uses his sportfishing quests to highlight the need for fisheries stewardship. Hoss has also personally documented the menhaden reduction industry fleet removing these critical forage fish from the Chesapeake Bay, and freely shared that footage for conservation purposes.

Here is his story.

I was lucky enough to have a best friend when I was young, around 9 years old, who had a much older stepbrother who liked to fish. He took us with him on occasion. This was mainly fishing in lakes and ponds for panfish, bass, and catfish in Arizona, but it gave me an appreciation for being in the outdoors and especially the bug for fishing at an early age.

Once my buddy and I were fishing in a park lake in Phoenix. It was an old, concrete-lined lake that had several fingers running out of it, and in one of them I saw a deeper hole at the bottom. In the hole I spied a round object that had moved slightly. Thinking it was a turtle, I dropped a worm on a hook down into the hole and to our surprise the “turtle” opened up and gulped the bait. It wasn’t a turtle at all, but a giant catfish.

Once hooked, it took off out of the concrete into the lake for a fight. We could see it was a big catfish and watched it tearing up the reedbed across from us. Eventually the line broke, but the impact forever changed me because I realized fishing was magical, it was a key to adventure since anything could happen.

If I could hunt or fish anywhere, I would pick a fly-fishing trip in the Seychelles off the coast of Africa for giant trevally and bumphead parrotfish. The evolution of a fisherman generally goes from most, to biggest, then to hardest. For many species, hardest equates to the biggest on a fly. Those Seychelles fish are unique, aggressive at times, and very strong. Trying to land them on a coral atoll will test your skills and your gear. And being in a place like the Seychelles, remote and beautiful, with a limited footprint from mankind, is always rejuvenating to me. So, when I finally get there and hook one up, I’ll be scratching one off the top of my bucket list and recharging my batteries.

Conservation has enhanced my life significantly because without it being fought for by past generations, I don’t think there would be much wildlife or wild places left for my generation to enjoy. Being active in conservation is an opportunity for each of us to show we care about what happens to the world, now and in the future. Simple things like picking up the trash off a riverbank or donating to a conservation organization show you care. I have been lucky enough to travel the world and fish in a lot of wild places for great fish. The reason I did the television show “Hoss Off the Grid” was to show the great fisheries that are still left and why we need to fight to protect them.

“Without people being actively involved in conservation, there will likely be nothing left to conserve.”

I recently moved to Memphis, Tenn., and here we fish for big trout in a lot of the tailwaters below dams in northern Arkansas. Two of these rivers have produced world record-size brown trout and have robust trout fisheries. The Little Red River produced a 40-pound brown in 1992 and the White River produced a record 40-pound, 4-ounce brown that same year. These tailwaters are controlled by the Army Corps of Engineers for hydropower and flood control and have no minimum flow requirements that must be adhered to.

This last winter we saw water so low on the Little Red that it exposed the spawning beds upriver for over a week during the brown trout spawning run. That’s an issue. It’s never easy to get federal agencies to move quickly, so we will have to coordinate our efforts to magnify our individual voices to stop it from happening again.

I think conservation is a duty we all have to ourselves, the natural world, and future generations of outdoor enthusiasts. Without people being actively involved in conservation, there will likely be nothing left to conserve within a short period of time. A natural resource will always have folks who want to exploit it, and in most cases, if left unchallenged, they will overexploit it to the point they abandon it and move to the next thing to exploit. The Chesapeake Bay menhaden reduction fishery is a prime example of overexploitation to the point of decimation. I saw the same thing on the Columbia River in Oregon, around commercial fishing for salmon when Endangered Species Act-listed runs of fish were trying to make it home through the same waters from which they originated.

It’s important for me to know I’ve contributed my part to try to make things better for the generations coming behind me. Conservation is really the only thing that will keep the wild places wild and ensure fish and other wildlife are available for the next generation of hunters and anglers to enjoy. I’ve already seen the degradation of some incredible fisheries in my lifetime and hope that our efforts to preserve ecosystems and guard our world’s natural environment from overexploitation will allow some of them to eventually recover. Without continued diligence on conservation efforts, we can’t hang on to what we have or make it better. That’s why it’s so important to get young people involved in conservation as much and as early as possible.

I also challenge the next generation to join conservation groups, since regulators care about votes. Membership in a group represents votes to those in power, and tells them they need to listen.

All photos courtesy of Jon Haas/Hoss Off the Grid

Support TRCP’s forage fish conservation efforts to help protect menhaden and herring.

The TRCP is your no-B.S. resource for all things conservation. In our weekly Roosevelt Report, you’ll receive the latest news on emerging habitat threats, legislation and proposals on the move, public land access solutions we’re spearheading, and opportunities for hunters and anglers to take action. Sign up now.

by: Ryan Lockwood

posted in: Habitat and Clean Water

April 22, 2024

Blue Catfish in the Chesapeake are Gobbling Up Everything in It

This aquatic invasive species eats the striped bass, menhaden, and blue crabs so vital for the Bay’s health, recreational fishing, and economy

Great tasting: check. Will pull the rod from your hand: check. High chance of success: check.

It probably sounds like I’m talking about peak-season Gulf redfish or Long Island striped bass, but believe it or not, I’m talking about blue catfish – an incredibly resilient invasive species that is taking over the Chesapeake Bay’s waterways and harming important fisheries as it gobbles its way through them.

While native to middle America’s Mississippi and Ohio River watersheds, blue catfish are considered an aquatic invasive species in the Chesapeake Bay. Like other AIS threats around the country, their presence negatively impacts recreational fisheries, ecosystems, and economies. When TRCP and its partners convened an AIS commission two years ago, we had harmful species just like this in mind.

As the largest species of catfish in North America, blue cats can exceed 100 pounds thanks to a voracious appetite, unmatched adaptability, and a willingness to live just about anywhere and eat just about anything. So what are they doing in the Bay, and what can be done to blunt their impacts?

Unforeseen Consequences

In the mid-1970s, the Chesapeake Bay and its tributaries were overfished and highly polluted. In response, fisheries managers in Virginia decided they needed to stock a different type of fish – a hearty specimen that could handle the poor conditions, offer anglers a good fight, and provide nice table fare. They settled on blue catfish. An added benefit they saw to this freshwater species was that it wouldn’t be able to spread beyond the targeted rivers.

“They thought because they are river fish they wouldn’t tolerate the saltwater conditions in the Bay,” said Dr. Noah Bressman, assistant professor in the Department of Biology at Salisbury University. “But they were wrong.”

Managers initially released blue catfish into the James and Rappahannock rivers, but they have since spread widely throughout most of the upper Bay. Today, blue catfish can be found in every major tidal river in Maryland, and in some locations make up as much as 70 percent of the total biomass.

“As an apex predator, invasive blue catfish continue to impact the ecological balance of the Chesapeake Bay by competing with native species for important forage species like menhaden and herring,” said Dave Sikorski, executive director of Coastal Conservation Association Maryland.

Not a Picky Eater

Dr. Bressman is a top expert on invasive blue catfish, researching such areas as their primary diet, feeding behavior, and ecology in the Bay. His lab uses boat-based electrofishing with the Maryland Department of Natural Resources to catch hundreds of thousands of blue catfish for research. What they’ve learned is that these generalistic, opportunistic omnivores—much like coyotes or cockroaches—will eat anything.

Bressman’s research has turned up a 47-pound catfish with a whole adult wood duck in its stomach, and a 30-inch catfish with a 19-inch striped bass inside. Blue catfish eat many millions of blue crabs per year, and readily gorge on white perch, menhaden, striped bass (also known in Maryland as rockfish), even turtles and muskrats and their own young. On the Eastern Shore, they also target other important forage fish species – alewives and blueback herring. Tissue sampling evidence even suggests they are eating the eggs of striped bass, herring, and other fish, and as top predators they also compete with sportfish for the same prey.

“People think of catfish as slow-moving bottom feeders,” Bressman said. “But these are active predators. They eat anything and everything they can get their mouth around.”

If You Can’t Beat ‘Em, Eat ‘Em

Ask anyone, and they will tell you this problem is not going to go away. Bressman said that blue catfish are the most abundant fish, by biomass, in the rivers around the Bay. The problem has gotten so bad in the last couple decades that it’s actually generated a growing commercial fishery.

“What started as me targeting striped bass and hard crabs, and only fishing for blue catfish in between, has now gotten reversed,” said Rocky Rice, owner and operator of Piccowaxen Creek Seafood.

Rice has been commercially targeting blue catfish in the Potomac River for the last 12 years. He started fishing for these invasives merely to generate income in slow seasons, but now blue catfish are the main focus of his operation. Using primarily longlines and hoop pots, he targets fish in the best eating range of about 3 to 10 pounds.

And Rice is not alone. In 2022, commercial harvesters on the Potomac reported more than 3.1 million pounds of blue catfish landed, according to the Potomac River Fisheries Commission. This number far exceeds those for all other finfish species, except menhaden, harvested in the brackish river. By comparison, striped bass was the next highest fish species commercially landed at 428,000 pounds. And that’s just in the Potomac.

Unlike striped bass, whose numbers have been trending lower for years, blue catfish populations are practically impossible to eradicate, or even stunt. Rice says it’s one reason he targets this invasive.

“Granted I’m a fisherman and I need to make money,” Rice said. “But if I can minimize negative impacts on our native species also it’s a win-win.”

Dr. Bressman says just to keep the blue catfish population stable, fishermen must remove 15- to 30-million pounds of catfish from the Chesapeake Bay each year, and much more to reduce it. He asserts that without active human intervention, catfish could likely become the dominant predator in brackish portions of the Bay.

Fun to Catch

So the best solution to keeping blue catfish populations in check, and to help protect native species, is one that offers real rewards: Go fishing. Blue cats are known for growing big, fighting hard, and tasting far better than most people expect. They’re also fairly simple to coax a bite from, and in Maryland there’s no catch limit.

If you’ve got a rod and reel, and willingness to target a different sort of fish, Rice says you can fish virtually anywhere in the brackish and fresh portions of the upper Bay. Dr. Bressman can back this up. In a previous tournament targeting blue cats, he fished from shore to pass the time while he waited for boats to come back in for weigh-ins. He had to stop one hour into the eight-hour tournament, and still almost won the shore fishing category with a half-dozen fish.

CCA Maryland, along with partners like Yamaha Rightwaters, is working to raise awareness with recreational anglers to help get them into the game. To target the threat of aquatic invasive fish species in the state, they offer fishing tournaments and other events to help engage anglers. A good example is the Great Chesapeake Invasives Count, which launched April 1 and runs through March 31, 2025.

“To combat this looming issue, and empower anglers to do their part, CCA Maryland is proud to partner with Fish & Hunt Maryland, Maryland DNR, Maryland’s Best Seafood, and others to promote the opportunities for fishing that invasive catfish present, and support data collection efforts to help guide future management actions,” said Sikorski.

Even Better to Eat

“These aren’t your muddy-bottom catfish,” Bressman said. “They eat things we like to eat and that makes them taste better than other catfish.”

Bressman, Sikorski, and Rice all say they love dining on firm, flaky blue catfish filets, which taste quite similar to those of striped bass – largely because both species are active predators that compete for the same prey. The culinary value of this fish is catching on. Maryland’s Best, a state-run program that connects consumers with locally sourced agricultural products, offers a listing of 16 grocery stores and 24 restaurants that sell wild-caught Chesapeake blue catfish, to help support the state’s watermen and fight this invasive.

“It makes no sense for someone to buy a catfish that comes from overseas, because we have a better quality product right here,” Rice said. “We have to eat our way through this problem.”

Rice says he personally likes to deep fry the white, flaky filets, but has broiled and blackened them too. He’s even had blue catfish pot pie. He said their versatility and palatability is probably why chefs like these fish so much.

“I’ve fed it to a lot of my friends who’d said they didn’t like catfish,” he said, “and now that they’ve had it it’s one of their favorite foods.”

Do Your Part

If you do head out looking for blue catfish in the Bay area, be sure to share the photos and filets with family and friends – especially via online imagery – to help drum up interest. And whether or not you target these fish, if you ever catch one, be sure to not throw it back into the water alive (an exception being some parts of Virginia, where you need to be aware of a daily 20-fish creel limit and allowance for only one catfish over 32 inches).

Also important to note is that in some areas around the Chesapeake Bay, catfish – especially larger ones – along with other fish species like striped bass may have unsafe contaminant levels due to poor water quality. Avoid eating catfish over 30 inches long, remove the skin and fat when preparing, and and keep up with each state’s fish consumption advisories like those for Maryland, Virginia, Washington, D.C., and Delaware.

If you don’t want to catch or cook blue catfish, you can always support Bay-area businesses that offer locally sourced blue catfish filets. The bottom line is that dealing with blue catfish is an all-hands-on-deck situation, so the conservation community needs a lot of people working to tackle it in different ways.

“We need a cultural shift,” Bressman says. “The more catfish you eat, the more striped bass and blue crabs will be in the Bay.”

Learn about TRCP’s AIS Report here.

by: Dan Morgan

posted in: Habitat and Clean Water

In the Arena: Edgar Diaz

TRCP’s “In the Arena” series highlights the individual voices of hunters and anglers who, as Theodore Roosevelt so famously said, strive valiantly in the worthy cause of conservation.

Edgar Diaz

Hometown: Austin, Texas
Occupation: Founder of Sight Line Provisions.
Conservation credentials: Championing conservation efforts on-the-ground and through his company.

Edgar Diaz’s lifelong connection to the outdoors, shaped by childhood adventures in Baja and Southern California, led him to found Sight Line Provisions—a brand deeply committed to conservation. With a blend of personal passion and professional dedication, Edgar advocates for responsible stewardship of our wild spaces, inspiring others to join him in protecting the outdoors for years to come.

Here is his story.

From my earliest memories, the outdoors has been my sanctuary. Those family vacations to the beaches of Baja and the mountains of Southern California are etched in my mind like the lines my father used to make on our old powder blue tent marking each destination we visited as a family. Camping on bluffs in Ensenada and by the Kern River, I found solace and excitement in nature, especially when paired with my father’s love for fishing.

Edgar has always been called by the ocean and mountains where he developed his love of fishing, mountain biking, and birding. His connection to the outdoors started with these activities.

Today, if I could pick any place to hunt or fish, it would undoubtedly be Baja California. The allure of chasing California quail in the morning, followed by the exhilaration of pursuing roosterfish, fills my dreams. I recall a particularly memorable fishing trip where I stumbled upon a California quail —and it was a perfect blend of my passions. I know this trip would be an epic cast and blast.

Conservation has become more than just a cause; it’s a way of life for me. As the founder of Sight Line Provisions, I’ve woven conservation into the fabric of our brand. Preserving our natural resources isn’t just a duty; it’s essential for our enjoyment of the outdoors. Here in Central Texas, I’ve personally witnessed the impact of conservation efforts, especially through organizations like Guadalupe Trout Unlimited, which has transformed our local fishery into a gem for our community.

Yet, despite the progress, challenges loom large, none more pressing than water conservation. Here in the Texas Hill Country, water is a precious resource, one that’s often wasted, diverted, or even stolen. It’s a battle we must fight together as a community, safeguarding our natural treasures for future generations.

For me, being involved in conservation isn’t just about reducing my footprint—it’s about leaving a legacy. It’s about ensuring that the wild places I love remain for those who come after me. Through Sight Line Provisions, I strive to support the very organizations and efforts that protect the landscapes and waters that have shaped me.

Sight Line Provisions partners with organizations like Captains for Clean Water, Trout Unlimited, The Mayfly Project, and the F-Y-S-H Project to raise funds and awareness for issues important to the sporting community.

But conservation isn’t just about protecting nature; it’s about preserving a way of life. It’s about passing on the tradition to the next generation of hunters and anglers. In a world where progress threatens to overshadow the simple joys of the outdoors, it’s our responsibility to ensure that future generations have the same opportunities to connect with nature that we’ve had. It’s about staying informed, acting responsibly, and most importantly, getting that younger generation into the great outdoors. After all, they are the stewards of tomorrow, and it’s up to us to equip them with the knowledge and passion necessary to protect our wild spaces for generations to come.

Do you know someone “In the Arena” who should be featured here? Email us at info@trcp.org

by: Jen Leahy

posted in: Habitat and Clean Water

April 19, 2024

BLM Announces Big Wins for Wildlife, Hunters, and Anglers on 13 Million Acres of Public Lands in Northern Alaska

The Central Yukon Resource Management Plan includes measures to safeguard important habitat and world-class recreation opportunities

Today, after more than a decade of engagement with local residents, Alaska Native Tribes, hunters and anglers, and conservation and development interests, the Bureau of Land Management released a revised resource management plan for 13.3 million acres of BLM-managed public lands in northern Alaska.

The Central Yukon planning area features some of the most valued big game species in Alaska—including Dall sheep, moose, and caribou—and 25 species of fish. The area is perhaps best recognized for the Dalton Highway Corridor, also known as the Haul Road. This unique recreation destination allows for some of the most remote—yet road accessible—hike-in and float trips in Alaska. BLM-managed lands within the 56-million-acre planning area provide important habitat connectivity between several conservation units that are prized by hunters and anglers, including five national wildlife refuges.

“The BLM’s revised Central Yukon plan is great news for Alaskans and visiting hunters and anglers who know and treasure these wild public lands, and for everyone who dreams of an iconic Haul Road hunting or fishing trip,” said Jen Leahy, Alaska senior program manager for the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership. “The hunting and fishing community has been involved in this plan revision for many years. We thank the BLM for adopting several habitat-focused measures in the final plan, which, as a whole, appropriately balances conservation and development interests.”

The plan contains measures that avoid or minimize impacts to fish, wildlife, and important habitats; outlines steps to prepare for the growing recreational demand along the Dalton Corridor that is expected to increase over the next two decades; and maintains existing conservation safeguards that were already in place to uphold the quality hunting, fishing, and other recreational opportunities of the region. To manage for continued hunting and fishing opportunities in the Dalton Corridor, the BLM is proposing to adopt a Backcountry Conservation Area, a land use allocation focused on habitat conservation and wildlife dependent recreation that allows for other traditional uses to continue. The plan additionally includes provisions to conserve habitat for caribou and Dall sheep.

Following a 60-day review period, the BLM will issue an approved RMP and Record of Decision. Once final, the RMP will guide landscape-level management and the various uses allowed on BLM lands in this region for the next 20 or more years.