"The Forest Service is expected this week to formally launch a monthslong process to eventually amend federal greater sage grouse conservation plans covering more than a dozen national forests and grasslands in six Western states.
The Forest Service, as early as tomorrow, is expected to publish a notice of intent in the Federal Register announcing it will develop an environmental impact statement (EIS) exploring possible amendments to land-use plans that were amended by the Obama administration in 2015 to include sage grouse protection measures.
The notice is expected to include a list of potential alterations to be evaluated, including changes to mitigation strategies and habitat protection boundaries, as well as possibly removing so-called sagebrush focal areas (SFAs) that the Fish and Wildlife Service said in 2015 are critical to the grouse's survival."
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