Wyoming’s Sagebrush Sea
The Cowboy State is key to saving one of the most vulnerable natural landscapes on Earth.
The Sagebrush Sea is the heart of the interior West. It has been home to Indigenous people for millennia and to generations of ranching families. A vast mingling of shrublands and grasslands, it rolls toward the horizon like a vast inland sea. More than 350 native bird and animal species inhabit this ecosystem, from pygmy owls and melodic songbirds to pronghorn and mountain lions. Some, like the greater sage-grouse, can survive nowhere else.
Invasive Plants
This iconic landscape is disappearing at an alarming rate—more than a million acres a year—and the causes are many. Some of the land has been plowed under for crops, poorly grazed or paved and developed for energy facilities. Invasive grasses like medusahead and cheatgrass are muscling out native plants—producing poor forage for wildlife and livestock and fueling a cycle of larger and more dangerous wildfires.
Protecting the Sagebrush Sea
The Nature Conservancy is working across Colorado, Utah, Wyoming, Montana, Idaho, Nevada and Oregon to protect this iconic western landscape. Explore work happening across the West.
Native Seeds
Native plants are key to restoring Wyoming’s wild and working lands, but land managers have long struggled with not having enough native seeds, enough of the right mix of local species, or enough to restore large areas such as mine sites or areas where invasive grasses have taken over.
TNC has stepped in to help solve this challenge by studying native plants in the lab to determine what environmental conditions they need to sprout. Some native plant seeds just need a period of cold, moist conditions similar to what you would expect them to experience over the winter. Others need their tough exterior shells scratched and scarred to allow water to enter the seed and induce germination. By answering some of these basic scientific questions, we can move native seeds toward commercial production and help make them available for restoration projects across Wyoming.
To help create a much-needed pipeline for native seeds, our Wyoming team co-wrote a new seed strategy in 2025 with a group of statewide partners. The strategy, released by the Wyoming Department of Agriculture, lays out a plan to expand the availability of seeds of native species that are essential to conserve and restore Wyoming’s wild and working lands while keeping the needs of seed growers at the forefront.
Popo Agie River
Despite its moniker, the Sagebrush Sea is an arid region. Water is a precious resource and one that is much in demand. In Wyoming, partners have come together to help protect and improve conditions on a beloved river that is the centerpiece of a vibrant community.
The Middle Fork of the Popo Agie River is the focal point of Lander’s city park and integral to the community’s identity. But this is a very hard-working river. First tumbling out of high-country wilderness, it drops 6,000 feet into the valley below, where it serves a wide range of users. Besides providing drinking water for thousands of people and a multitude of wildlife, it irrigates fields and provides recreational opportunities for anglers and other outdoor enthusiasts. The problem is, by late summer, the river often slows to a mere trickle by the time it reaches Lander—resulting in bacterial levels that pose a danger to public health. As our climate changes, the situation is only expected to get worse. But there are solutions.
Popo Agie
Healthy Rivers Initiative
The Healthy Rivers Initiative has pulled together those who use the river to identify, develop and implement voluntary measures and best practices for managing water during times of low flow in ways that honor existing water rights.
For years, the Popo Agie Conservation District and the Wyoming Department of Environmental Quality have been gathering information on water quality and flows and trying to identify sources of bacterial contamination. Pulling together these and other resources and expanding collaboration are a continuing part of the effort.
The Nature Conservancy was an early partner in this initiative, helping build a foundation and finding creative ways to address the thorny issues of water quality and low flows. As the initiative has matured, we have supported it both financially and through our expertise and innovation. Our help takes different forms. For instance, we might finance basic improvements to irrigation systems, resulting in more water conservation. We could pioneer cooperative-use agreements that incentivize users to leave water in streams. TNC is actively looking for more ways to benefit people and nature.
It’s an all-hands effort to protect and heal a river on which so many of us depend, and we’re all dedicated to its success.
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Sagebrush Sea
The Nature Conservancy is working across Colorado, Utah, Wyoming, Montana, Idaho, Nevada and Oregon to protect this iconic western landscape, one of the largest natural systems in North America.