Pew Applauds New Management Plan for Southwest Wyoming Public Lands

WASHINGTON—The Pew Charitable Trusts today commended the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) for finalizing the agency’s Rock Springs Resource Management Plan. The record of decision, issued December 20, 2024, affects about 3.6 million acres of public land in the southwest portion of Wyoming, an area of high wildlife and cultural value, as well as of energy resources such as oil and gas.

Through its Rock Springs field office, BLM oversees some of the most important wildlife migration corridors in the country, including the longest known mule deer migration, and some of the West’s most intact greater sage-grouse populations. These lands also hold cultural significance for many Tribes, provide clean drinking water for nearby communities, and sequester and store climate-warming carbon.

The record of decision represents the conclusion of the BLM’s revision of the Rock Springs Resource Management Plan, a process that began in 2011. The new plan affords protections to important areas, such as the Red Desert to Hoback mule deer migration corridor and the Steamboat Mountain area of critical environmental concern, among many other special ecological and cultural areas.

Matt Skroch, a director with Pew’s U.S. conservation program, issued this statement:

“Pew applauds the Bureau of Land Management for incorporating robust stakeholder feedback and finalizing the Rock Springs Resource Management Plan. After 13 years of planning and analysis, it’s important to let this plan work for the multiple uses it serves.  We look forward to supporting its implementation and working with those who work in and care about this incredible area.”