I hear you on the range in question, but unfortunately, with the Eastern sprawl out of Reno happening like it is, it'll always have a target on its back. However, the trade-off of ~15,000 acres to protect ~900,000 of arguably very similar habitat and winter range utilization is something to really think about. My question is, when comparing the NCAs they propose to "replace" or encompass the WSAs, it looks like they are getting downsized in some areas.
"Wilderness Study Areas (commonly known as WSAs) are places that have wilderness characteristics; that is a minimum size, naturalness, and outstanding opportunities for recreation which make them eligible for designation as wilderness... The establishment of a WSA served to identify areas for Congress to consider for addition to the National Wilderness Preservation System." - BLM.gov
So it's as if they have finalized their determination of what study areas should be protected, and in this case, as NCAs. Which is still great, but they should dive into the details of this conversion a little further.