Late notice, I know. I just got word of this a short while ago.
If you’re in the Portland area you may want to attend a meeting this evening on a new management plan for BLM land in Southeast Oregon.
The Oregon Natural Desert Association sent out an alert about this meeting early this afternoon.
It says BLM is writing a new plan for the Lakeview and Southeast Oregon districts after an earlier version was tossed away by a federal judge two years ago. ONDA says the agency and environmental groups are close to agreeing on an update. This meeting is an early step towards making the changes official.
Details:
- When: 5:30pm to 8:30pm
- Where: Portland Audubon, 5151 NW Cornell Road, Portland.
Key Issues:
ONDA says they want BLM to protect some of the wild areas by closing them to off-roading and other motorized vehicles. The group says it’s identified three million acres in the SE Oregon and Lakeview districts that could potentially be new wilderness areas.
It wants BLM to take another look at protecting habitat for the Greater Sage Grouse. The Interior Department has put the sage grouse on a waiting list of species that deserve to be added to the Endangered Species List. Oregon has about 20% of the nation’s remaining sage grouse habitat.
ONDA also says BLM should consider ways to convince ranchers to voluntarily give up grazing permits. The group says these lands have been overgrazed and wants to find ways to reduce it.
For More Information:
ONDA Alert: Ask BLM for better protection for SE Oregon
