BLM-CO Strengthening Partnerships for Wildlife Resource Management on Colorado's Public Lands

Description

The Colorado State Office of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) will work with partners and maintain close collaboration with States, Tribes, other Federal agencies, and other organizations in conserving and restoring wildlife habitats to support wildlife and wildlife uses under a shared conservation stewardship approach. The BLM uses the latest geospatial data technologies to share wildlife and wildlife data within BLM and with partners to work more efficiently. The Wildlife Program leverages funds with other BLM programs to address vegetation restoration that not only improves wildlife habitat, but also increases forage for livestock, improves water quality, removes invasive weed species, and reduces the threat of catastrophic wildfires. BLM Colorado is focusing work in areas to facilitate meeting the priorities of the Administration, Secretary, Congressional appropriations, and the BLM. This includes, but is not limited to, expanding hunting and wildlife viewing opportunities and identifying areas to increase access for these purposes; working with State agencies to meet State wildlife population objectives and working with rural communities to enhance economic opportunities related to wildlife; working to enhance habitat for upland game, waterfowl, big game and watchable wildlife species; providing consistent data to streamline energy and grazing permitting, and working with partners to provide data to streamline land use planning; and partnering with conservation stewardship organizations to increase habitat quality.BLM Colorado has an opportunity to work with partner organizations to assist with the following:● Provide support to coordinate, integrate, and focus financial and in-kind investments in landscape resiliency and connectivity projects, and in areas of big game winter range, migration corridors or other important seasonal habitats.● Provide support for Secretarial Order No. 3347: Conservation Stewardship and Outdoor Recreation; Advance conservation stewardship, improve game and habitat management, and increase outdoor recreation opportunities by identifying areas where hunting and wildlife viewing opportunities can be expanded.● Provide support for Secretarial Order No. 3353 (Greater Sage-Grouse Conservation and Cooperation with Western States); Through implementation of collaborative efforts with State and local partners and organizations critical to addressing challenges to habitat conservation, work on sage grouse and their habitats.● Provide support for Secretarial Order 3356, Hunting, Fishing, Recreational Shooting, and Wildlife Conservation Opportunities and Coordination with States, Tribes, and Territories; incorporate analysis of the impacts of Federal land and water actions on wildlife habitat, and thus, hunting opportunities in planning and decision making; and, collaborate with state wildlife agencies to attain or sustain wildlife population goals, particularly for wildlife that is hunted.● Provide support for Secretarial Order No. 3362 (Improving Habitat Quality in Western Big-Game Winter Range and Migration Corridors); work with state wildlife agencies to include habitat data, and habitat & population objectives to incorporate measurable outcomes into BLM management decisions; apply site-specific management activities that conserve, improve, or restore habitat necessary to sustain local and regional big game populations.● Provide support for S.O. 3366, Increasing Recreational Opportunities on Lands and Waters Managed by the U.S. Department of the Interior work with state, tribal, other Federal, and non-governmental organizational partners to inventory public lands for birds and other watchable wildlife species, and to enhance bird and other watchable wildlife habitat in order to increase birding and wildlife viewing opportunities.● Collaborate with State, Federal, and non-government organization partners to leverage technical expertise and financial resources (cost share) to effectively assess habitat and wildlife populations in need of conservation or enhancement.● Develop and share science-based strategies through professional workshops, meetings, and work groups and conduct essential conservation and restoration actions to maintain sustainable healthy biological communities and wildlife of local and regional importance for reasons such as aesthetics, education, and ecosystem services.● Increase the percentage of Bureau Sensitive Species meeting or exceeding established objectives in Resource Management Plans or other conservation plans; including State Fish and Wildlife Agency Wildlife Action Plans.● Identify, conserve, and restore priority habitats (those that are locally at risk, important to local or regional communities, and contribute to national conservation for species or groups of species) so that they include native plants and are resilient to environmental stressors, such as drought, wildland fire, other unusual weather events, and insects/disease.● Inventory and monitor species populations and habitat, as well as the success of actions, projects, and treatments in areas targeted for habitat conservation and restoration, and continue conversion of wildlife data to regional geospatial coverages in cooperation with partners, while ensuring consistent methodologies in delineating occupied habitat.● Coordinate wildlife related environmental education to stimulate public understanding of the BLM role in maintaining and enhancing viable populations of wildlife and wildlife habitat.● Support priority projects to primarily benefit wildlife resources. Benefitting wildlife, a public resource serves a public purpose.● Develop decision support tools and information to enhance wildlife conservation (in collaboration with all land management entities that need to address a species conservation issue regardless of jurisdictional boundaries).For a full announcement, instructions, and application materials, please go to www.grants.gov to download forms and instructions.

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