Last chance for Canada's most endangered species?

Environmental groups petition Minister Kent for emergency sage-grouse protection

Alberta Wilderness Association (AWA) and a coalition of environmental groups are calling on federal Environment Minister Peter Kent to urgently take the steps necessary to prevent the imminent extinction of the greater sage-grouse in Canada.

Yesterday, Ecojustice submitted a legal petition on behalf of AWA and national and international environmental groups demanding Minister Kent use a provision in the Species at Risk Act (SARA) to give emergency protection to the sage-grouse in Canada. Scientists predict that without significant and meaningful protection, the birds will be extinct in Canada within a decade.

“If sage-grouse are wiped-out in Canada it will be an entirely avoidable, human-inflicted disaster,” says Madeline Wilson, AWA Conservation Specialist. “Failure to protect sage-grouse habitat has brought the species to the brink of extinction and urgent action is needed to save these spectacular birds.”

The sage-grouse has been described as Canada’s most endangered species. As of 2011, as few as 13 male birds still remained in Alberta. In 2010, just 42 males were counted in Saskatchewan. The population of this iconic and charismatic bird in Alberta and Saskatchewan declined by nearly 90 percent between 1988 and 2006.

Extensive energy development has essentially impacted all remaining sage-grouse habitat in southern Alberta. If the sage-grouse is allowed to disappear, it will be what University of Alberta professor Dr. Mark Boyce describes as “the first case where the oil and gas industry has caused the extirpation of a species in Canada.”

The petition calls for Minister Kent to issue an emergency protection order for the sage-grouse and stop further human disturbance to the birds’ habitat, which is critical to their chances for survival.  

“The decline of Canada’s sage-grouse is an emergency that demands the federal government’s immediate attention,” said Sean Nixon, Ecojustice staff lawyer. “The recent decline of sage-grouse presents perhaps the most compelling case for federal intervention in the history of SARA.  The provinces have turned a blind eye to this crisis and if left under their watch, these birds will be on a short road to extinction.”

Alberta Wilderness Association, the David Suzuki Foundation, the Wilderness Committee, the Society of Grasslands Naturalists, Sierra Club of Canada- Prairie Chapter, Lethbridge Naturalists’ Society, Nature Canada, Nature Alberta, Nature Saskatchewan, National Audubon Society- Rockies, WildEarth Guardians, and the Biodiversity Conservation Alliance have all signed onto the petition.

To read the Petition, click here

For more information:

Madeline Wilson, Conservation Specialist, Alberta Wilderness Association: (403) 283-2025