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Game and Fish seeks comment through May 2 on Sublette pronghorn migration corridor; solar farm identified as local bottleneck
Summary
Wyoming Game and Fish announced a public comment period through May 2 on a risk-and-opportunity assessment for the Sublette pronghorn migration corridor; staff identified a local bottleneck on Highway 372 tied to the Sweetwater solar facility and described mitigation options in development.
Dr. Sean Yancey, wildlife management coordinator for the Wyoming Game and Fish Department, briefed the Sweetwater County commission on the Sublette pronghorn migration-corridor process and the department's current biological risk-and-opportunity assessment.
"We're taking public comment on this document until May 2," Yancey said, noting three public meetings (Green River April 9, Jackson April 10, Pinedale April 15) where stakeholders can review corridor mapping and proposed 'bottlenecks.' He explained that the assessment maps low-, medium- and high-use portions and proposes bottlenecks where development or landscape changes restrict movement.
Yancey described one Sweetwater County bottleneck on Highway 372 adjacent to the Sweetwater solar facility. He said the chain-link fence and the layout of panels have in past pulses pushed pronghorn toward the highway, producing collisions and mortalities; the department is pursuing setbacks and alternative fence designs with BLM and WYDOT to create an avenue animals can use to traverse the development corridor.
The department emphasized that designation remains nonregulatory as currently identified; if the governor pursues designation after commission recommendation, a stakeholder working group would consider management options. Yancey invited county staff and stakeholders to review the assessment and send comments by the May 2 deadline.
