Board updates Greater Sage-Grouse combining zone maps to match state; adopts ordinance by emergency

Deschutes County commissioners closed a public hearing and adopted an ordinance updating the Greater Sage-Grouse combining zone map to conform with recently adopted state maps. The board approved first and second readings and adopted ordinance number 2025-001 by emergency.

What changed: Senior planner Nicole Mardell told the board the Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commission and the Land Conservation and Development Commission updated statewide habitat maps in December 2023 and January 2025, respectively. The county update aligns local mapping with the state rule. Staff said the updated maps result in an overall reduction of roughly 27,000 acres of mapped habitat within Deschutes County and that some parcels were reclassified: approximately 70 nonfederal tax lots moved from low-density to core habitat while about 32 tax lots moved from core to low-density.

Procedure and notice: Mardell said the state required mailing of Measure 56 notices to affected property owners; the county sent notices on the state's behalf in December. She said property owners could contest state mapping by submitting biological data during the state process but that local authority to alter the maps is limited; if county and state maps diverge, the state map controls by default.

Board action and vote: After staff presentation and no oral public testimony, the board agreed to proceed to deliberations and approved first and second readings of ordinance 2025-001 by emergency to make the county map consistent with the state. Commissioners voted in the affirmative on the emergency adoption.

Context and follow-up: Commissioners asked staff to provide an update on higher-level population and conservation data for sage grouse in the area at a future meeting; staff offered to invite Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife representatives or share the state’s conservation assessment and strategy when it is posted.