Short Science Syntheses and NEPA Analyses for Climate-Informed Land Management Decisions in Sagebrush Rangelands

The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) manages the largest area of public lands in the United States. Decision-making on BLM lands is complex because managers have to balance diverse, sometimes conflicting, resources, uses, and values. Land managers are more likely to achieve long-term land management goals and balance multiple desired uses and values across public landscapes when their decisions are informed by the best available science, including climate science.

The goal of this project is to develop a group of climate-informed short science syntheses accompanied by examples of worked environmental impact analyses. Both products will include sections on climate to help land managers understand and assess the influence of changing climate conditions on resources. The products will also be specifically designed to provide information required by the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). The BLM conducts over a thousand comprehensive NEPA analyses each year to assess and disclose to the public the potential environmental impacts of their decisions. This project, focusing on the sagebrush biome where many BLM lands are located, has the potential to enhance the use of science in hundreds of public lands decisions each year. The project will be conducted in partnership with BLM and US FWS (Fish and Wildlife Service) to ensure that products are useful for managers to strengthen the science foundation for public land management.