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The Objectives
Although nearly two-thirds of wetlands are in public ownership, their water supply is not. Therefore, many potentially productive wetlands fail to receive adequate water due to irrigation or other diversions. Urbanization is an immediate and growing threat to wetland habitats in the Intermountain West. The third major resource issue in the Intermountain West Joint Venture is the condition of the sagebrush biome. Well over three-fourths of the sagebrush type in the U.S. occurs within the bounds of the IWJV. Productivity of sagebrush-steppe communities has been significantly impaired by wildfire, invasive species, poor livestock management and other land uses over the last century which have fragmented this biome. Partnership efforts which include all land owners and resources users are vital to the recovery of this peculiarly western biome. What are the Current IWJV Habitat Objectives?Habitat objectives are currently being re-evaluated and updated in Coordinated State Implementation Plans to reflect an all-bird emphasis. These will be completed by late summer, 2004. Wetland habitat objectives developed in 1995 in the IWJV Implementation Plan are noted below:
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A most serious problem confronting the avian resources of the IWJV is the availability of a stable water supply for its desert wetland and riparian habitats. By definition, deserts have limited water supplies. When land uses occur in the desert areas such as urban development, agriculture, power generation, and mining, stable water supply problems can be compounded.