May 2021 - 10

NEWS

Williams Companies donated supplies and manpower for work on the Chain Lakes Wildlife Habitat Management Area northwest of Rawlins to reclaim disturbed areas for wildlife like this pronghorn.
(Photo by Chris Martin/WGFD)

Game and Fish honors Williams
for contributions to wildlife
CHEYENNE - Williams Companies
focuses on energy, but they also care about
the land and environment. Not only does
Williams work well with the Wyoming Game
and Department, it often is the first to ask
how it can help Game and Fish with various
projects around the state.
Those efforts earned Williams, which is
based in Tulsa, Oklahoma, the Game and
Fish's 2020 Industry Reclamation and Wildlife Stewardship Award. Williams was honored by Game and Fish for its contribution
of stewardship projects for maintenance, restoration or enhancement of wildlife, habitat
and recreation, along with its cooperative
nature of stewardship efforts and the extent
to which those efforts went above and beyond
normal regulatory requirements.
" Williams comes to us all the time and
asks us what we need and what it can do
to help, " said Linda Cope, Game and Fish
habitat protection biologist. " They want to be
very involved in what we do out in the field.
" Williams works with us to minimize
10 | May 2021

impacts to habitat and wildlife resources in
their project area. Williams works to plan
ahead with project development to get our
feedback before projects are developed on
the ground. "
Over the years Williams has worked
closely with Game and Fish to enact wildlife-friendly practices for natural gas delivery
and to reduce disturbance and impacts to
habitat in Wyoming's sagebrush steppe. Williams has protected core habitat for greater
sage grouse and worked closely with Game
and Fish to understand and comply with
the State of Wyoming Greater Sage Grouse
Executive Order.
Williams proactively seeks opportunities
to aid with on-the-ground projects through
monetary donations and supplies, but also
manpower. For example, in the fall of 2020
Williams donated supplies and labor to help
plant 1,500 sagebrush seedlings on the Chain
Lakes Wildlife Habitat Management Area,
northwest of Rawlins in the Red Desert, to
reclaim disturbed areas for wildlife. More

than 20 Williams employees assisted with
planting seedlings.
Williams has donated funds to the WYldlife Fund for the Interstate 25 Buffalo-to-Kaycee wildlife crossing project, and donated
money to the Wyoming Project Wild program
which focuses on education. Other donations
Williams has made include donating funds to
Game and Fish's Access Yes program, along
with donating money and manpower to programs at the Whiskey Mountain Conservation Camp outside of Dubois.
" Driving the clean energy economy
includes preserving the environment for
future generations while improving standards
of living today, " said Chad Teply, senior vice
president of project execution for Williams.
" We look forward to continuing our work
with the Wyoming Game and Fish Department this coming year and beyond. I applaud
our employees for their commitment and
dedication to protecting the areas in which
they live and work. "
- Robert Gagliardi, WGFD

May 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of May 2021