Niki Tsongas: “Many of our Nation's public lands, those lands which belong to all Americans, are managed under a multiple use mandate.…”

“Many of our Nation's public lands, those lands which belong to all Americans, are managed under a multiple use mandate. This means that they are managed to support a wide variety of uses, including hunting, fishing, hiking, and other recreation activities, alongside responsible energy development, the preservation of historic and cultural resources, the conservation of some of our Nation's most iconic landscapes, and wildlife habitat protection. The resource management plans that were recently finalized by the Bureau of Land Management to protect the greater sage-grouse and the broader sagebrush sea landscape strike the appropriate balance between the many uses of our public lands. The plans, which were developed in close consultation with the States and which reflect an unprecedented collaboration among stakeholders, allow for the responsible resource development, recreation, and preservation of the habitat which the greater sage-grouse requires to survive and thrive. Without these plans, it is highly likely that the greater sage-grouse would need to be listed under the Endangered Species Act. However, language in the underlying bill blocks funds from being used to implement the resource management plans, upsetting the carefully crafted balance that is required under the multiple use mandate.…”