Sage Grouse Habitat Initiative Part 2

Sage Grouse Habitat Initiative Part 2. I'm Greg Martin with today's Line On Agriculture. In many parts of the west the sage grouse is a part of the landscape but if not taken care of it could disappear and is even on the brink of being added to the endangered species list. USDA Under Secretary, Harris Sherman says they have spent about $21 million dollars to be proactive and keep the bird off the list. SHERMAN: The money is being used for a variety of conservation measures. Some of the money is being used to mark fences or remove fences. These are cattle fences. Because in the course of any given year there are collisions between the birds and the fences which kill significant numbers so we're in the process of marking fences. We anticipate this activity is probably save 800 to 1000 birds each year. Sherman says they are working with farmers and ranchers in other areas including minor changes in grazing. SHERMAN: In addition to that we are working to improve and to some extent modify the habitat of sage brush so that there will be better hiding cover for the nesting season for the sage grouse. This is a cooperative effort with ranchers where certain areas are rested from grazing, where there is modification of grazing practices, not significant ones but important ones. Those changes help to improve the cover areas for the birds. SHERMAN: Particularly out in the Oregon area we are removing conifer trees from sage brush habitat. We are in the process of working on the removal of about 40-thousand acres of these trees because these trees interfere with the introduction of grass in the area and they provide a perching area for predators of the sage grouse and so by removing 40-thousand acres of trees we're really opening up a couple hundred thousand acres of sage brush habitat. And Sherman says that this collection of measures is helping to keep the sage grouse thriving while keeping it off the endangered species list. Again he says these efforts and more are all voluntary for producers. SHERMAN: We're also getting into the activity of acquiring conservation easements. These are again voluntary easements between landowners and NRCS but these conservation easements are going to be important to help to prevent the fragmentation of sage grouse habitat. The fragmentation of the habitat in the past has been probably the most significant problem in protecting the habitat and preventing the decline of the species. That's today's Line On Agriculture. I'm Greg Martin on the Ag Information Network.