Gordon's EO Shields Wyoming's Yellowstone Habitats from Mining Rush

CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) — Gov. Mark Gordon issued Executive Order 2025-04, directing increased active forest management across Wyoming to protect critical habitats in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem from intensified mining activities. The order, signed amid rising environmental concerns initially reported by Cowboy State Daily, prioritizes treatments on 500,000 acres of high-risk federal and state lands near Yellowstone National Park, Jackson and Cody. It responds to pressures from foreign-backed mining claims surging 300% in the last year, threatening grizzly bear and greater sage grouse recovery areas.

The executive action fulfills Gordon's September 2025 pledge, coinciding with his petition to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to delist Greater Yellowstone grizzly bears, a population deemed recovered since 2003 with over 1,000 individuals. Supported by Montana and Idaho, the petition asserts no biological or legal basis for continued Endangered Species Act protections. The USFWS has 90 days from filing to review, potentially extending to 12 months for a decision, while the order ensures habitat security during this period.

Local stakeholders, including Wyoming Game and Fish Department officials, emphasize the order's role in mitigating wildfire risks and invasive species that exacerbate mining impacts. Michael Pearlman, Gordon's spokesman, stated the measures safeguard big game migration corridors in the Shoshone and Bridger-Teton national forests. Gordon also applauded the Bureau of Land Management's recent sage grouse plan amendment, aligning state efforts to conserve 37 million acres of Wyoming sagebrush habitat.

Critics from mining interests argue the order hampers economic opportunities in Park County and Teton County, where rare earth deposits could boost jobs. However, Gordon reiterated in a statement that Wyoming's approach balances conservation with responsible development, drawing on lessons from past delisting battles remanded by courts in 2018 and 2020.