Gunnison sage grouse do their ritual dance during mating season in this April 11, 2007, file photo. (Helen H. Richardson, Denver Post file)
Re: “Suing the federal government over sage grouse,” Jan. 4 editorial.
Your editorial opposing the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service listing the Gunnison sage grouse as officially threatened undermines your credibility. Reporter Bruce Finley put it clearly in reporting that fewer than 5,000 Gunnison grouse have survived only in western Colorado and southeastern Utah in a patch that is 7 percent of their natural habitat. And this condition is touted as “success” regarding local or state preservation efforts? Oh please. You do not have to drive far to see how land developers and gas and oil companies have run rough shod over natural lands in Colorado. Local and private efforts are welcome but are too little and too late. This listing as threatened, rather than a stronger listing as endangered, is an appropriate middle ground that The Post and others in the state should support and not oppose with wasteful lawsuits.
Edward Talbot,Arvada
This letter was published in the Jan. 13 edition.
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