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Two causes of habitat loss in the Wyoming Rockies illustrate the problems looming over native species. Energy development and inconsistent Endangered Species Act (ESA) policies are creating havoc all along the Rocky Mountains and Wyoming's stretch is not immune.
The Wildlife Society issued a 2007 report chronicling the effects of energy development on the Sage-grouse habitat in the Powder River Basin (PRB) of Wyoming and Montana. According to the report, coal-bed natural gas (CBNG) development needed further regulation to stop CBNG development near sage-grouse leks (sage grouse male gatherings in mating season) on federal lands. The report raises concerns over the loss of sagebrush and the ensuing long-term loss of habitat.
Fast-forward two years later. The Wyoming Game and Fish Department announces that wind energy development constitutes a threat to sage grouse habitat. Weigh these complex issues. While traditional energy development frequently is seen as threatening to endangered or threatened species, some people see wind energy as safer. Not so for the sage grouse.
The Endangered Species Act, which was designed to protect species habitat, has become a political blade that slices through protections at the whim and the agendas of different administration both liberal and conservative. In 2008, protections for the Preble's jumping mouse were lifted in Wyoming and upheld in Colorado. This uneven behavior at the federal level points toward doom for the Preble's mouse. Wildlife protection advocates such as the National Resource Defence Council (NRDC) and Biodiversity Conservation Alliance in Laramie, Wyoming continue to fight to save the mouse's dwindling habitat.
