WINNEMUCCA - Anyone who is interested in learning more about the status of the greater sage grouse is encouraged to attend a free symposium this weekend in Elko.
The symposium will begin at 6:30 p.m. Saturday at the Elko Convention Center, which is located at 700 Moren Way.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is scheduled to review the bird's status under the federal Endangered Species Act in 2015. In the meantime, federal land managers are revising their Resource Management Plans to help sage grouse populations recover.
However, many Elko-area residents have bristled at some of the stricter interim management guidelines that the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has adopted.
In response, former Assemblyman John Carpenter teamed up with other concerned citizens to organize this weekend's symposium. Carpenter will be on hand to give the opening remarks.
Other speakers (and topics) include:
Assemblyman Ira Hansen: Sage grouse population: past, present and future
Gary Back, Ph.D.: Population management units
Mark Jensen and Joe Bennett: Analysis of sage grouse to predation
Assemblyman Pete Goicoechea: What the Nevada plan should be
Assemblyman John Ellison: If the sage grouse is listed
Elko County Commissioner Charlie Myers: To hunt or not to hunt
Grant Gerber: BLM interim regulations
Pat Laughlin: Nevada Alliance 4 Wildlife
Tom Warren: Elko BLM Operations Manager, fire rehabilitation
J.J. Goicoechea: Nevada Cattlemen's Association
Matt Zietlow, Environmental Manager, Marigold Mining, Nevada Mining Association
Jake Tibbitts: Eureka County, Natural Resources
Cory Hunt, Representative of Gov. Brian Sandoval
For more information, contact Carpenter at (775) 738-9861.
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