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Vantage to Pomona Heights Chapter 3 230 kV Transmission Line Project FEIS Affected Environment PAGE 3-94 Primary guidance for conservation of Sage-Grouse in the YTC population is the Washington Greater Sage-Grouse Recovery Plan (Stinson et al. 2004) and the JBLM YTC Western Sage-Grouse Management Plan (Livingston 1998). The Required Design Features (RDFs), the Project-Specific Framework for Development of a Sage-Grouse Compensatory Mitigation Plan, and Pacific Power’s Sage-Grouse Compensatory Mitigation Plan are all Project-specific components in the effort to protect and recover Sage-Grouse. State Regulations and Policies In 2004, the state of Washington published the Greater Sage-Grouse Recovery Plan (Recovery Plan) to summarize the current knowledge of Sage-Grouse in Washington and to outline strategies to increase population size and distribution. This Recovery Plan delineated distinctive regions in Washington, called management units (MUs), to focus recovery efforts in those areas most likely to contribute to reaching recovery objectives. Fourteen MUs were delineated based on current occupancy, land ownership, location, topography, and habitat quantity, condition, and potential (Stinson et al. 2004). The four MUs that would be crossed by the Project Action Alternatives include: Rattlesnake Hills, JBLM YTC, Umtanum Ridge, and Saddle Mountains (see Figure 3.3-2). The eight-mile wide Sage-Grouse analysis area also encompasses land within the Potholes MU. The MUs are further designated as: Regularly Occupied Habitat - includes intact sagebrush communities known to be occupied by resident breeding populations of Sage-Grouse and are considered to be of highest conservation value. MUs within the eight-mile wide Sage-Grouse analysis area designated as Regularly Occupied Habitat are: JBLM YTC, Rattlesnake Hills, and Umtanum Ridge. Connectivity Habitat - includes movement corridors between seasonally used areas and populations and includes areas important for providing habitat connections. There are no MUs within the eight-mile wide Sage-Grouse analysis area designated as Connectivity Habitat. Colockum MU, designated as Connectivity Habitat, is located approximately five miles north of Route Segments NNR-4 and NNR-5. Occasionally Occupied Habitat - includes habitat that may be occupied on a seasonal or irregular basis, but is not regularly occupied by Sage-Grouse. Within the eight-mile wide Sage-Grouse analysis area, Saddle Mountains MU is designated as Occasionally Occupied Habitat. Expansion Habitat - includes areas where expansion could occur through an improvement in habitat quality. The Potholes MU is within the eight-mile wide Sage-Grouse analysis area and has been designated as Expansion Habitat. The Recovery Plan’s goal is to establish a viable population of Sage-Grouse in a substantial portion of its historic range in Washington, with specific recovery objectives focusing on the breeding season population. The Recovery Plan states that recovering Sage-Grouse to a viable population will require an increase in population density, an expansion of occupied areas, and an improvement in habitat quality. Current and past management efforts focused on maintaining the existing populations and distributions of Sage-Grouse, while recovery efforts will focus on increasing the numbers and distribution of Sage-Grouse in Washington. Some of the designated MUs will require substantial restoration efforts to support breeding and wintering populations and may require coordinated efforts between public and private land managers to maintain and improve habitat (Stinson et al. 2004). JBLM YTC Regulations and Policies JBLM YTC has developed a Western Sage-Grouse Management Plan (Livingston 1998) that describes the current knowledge of and threats facing Sage-Grouse on the JBLM YTC. It outlines protection measures and procedures to be followed to ensure that the YTC Sage-Grouse population persists into the