Idaho’s Congressional Delegation and Governor C.L. “Butch” Otter are calling on Interior Secretary Ken Salazar to stand firm on his department’s justified “warranted but precluded” ruling regarding protections for sage grouse.  In a letter to Salazar sent today, Idaho Senators Mike Crapo and Jim Risch, Congressman Mike Simpson and Walt Minnick, and Governor Otter pointed to Idaho’s wide-ranging, collaborative on-the-ground efforts that have improved habitat for the sage grouse and provide rationale for the agency’s determinations about listing.

“In 1996, the State of Idaho became one of the first states in the country to develop a comprehensive plan for conserving the species and its habitat,” wrote the Governor and Delegation members.  “It amended the plan in 2006, and that has led to the prioritization and implementation of numerous conservation actions for the benefit of the species.”

Noting that Interior’s ruling is now facing a court challenge, the Delegation and Governor said that Secretary Salazar is to be commended for his determination—and he should stand by his decision concerning sage grouse.  “We need to ensure that our collective attention to this important issue does not wane or is overshadowed by inaction in the coming months,” the Idahoans wrote.

A full copy of the letter from the Idaho Delegation and Governor Otter to Secretary Salazar is attached.