Wolves...Is it true?
#62
Idaho Governor Signs Wolf Disaster Bill Into Law!!
4/21/2011
BOISE, Idaho (AP) — Gov. C.L. "Butch'' Otter has signed a bill into law that will allow him to declare a wolf disaster emergency in Idaho.
The governor signed the bill Tuesday, even though Congress already took action this month to strip federal protections from wolves in the northern Rocky Mountains. Otter says he also has concerns about undermining his own statutory authority to declare such disasters, with the new state law.
The measure allows the governor to enlist local law enforcement agents to reduce Idaho's wolf population, which at 800 animals makes up about half of the wolves in the region.
Otter says despite the federal delisting and his concerns, portions of the new law could prove useful if the predators are ever relisted under the under the Endangered Species Act.
BOISE, Idaho (AP) — Gov. C.L. "Butch'' Otter has signed a bill into law that will allow him to declare a wolf disaster emergency in Idaho.
The governor signed the bill Tuesday, even though Congress already took action this month to strip federal protections from wolves in the northern Rocky Mountains. Otter says he also has concerns about undermining his own statutory authority to declare such disasters, with the new state law.
The measure allows the governor to enlist local law enforcement agents to reduce Idaho's wolf population, which at 800 animals makes up about half of the wolves in the region.
Otter says despite the federal delisting and his concerns, portions of the new law could prove useful if the predators are ever relisted under the under the Endangered Species Act.
#63
Wolves in 8 states have been removed from the endangered species list by an act of congress. A rider was attached to the federal spending bill.
http://missoulian.com/news/local/art...cc4c002e0.html
Northern Rocky Mountain gray wolves officially return to state control Thursday, when their removal from Endangered Species Act protection is published in the Federal Register.
That means Montana and Idaho hunters will be back in the business of controlling wolf populations this fall. A bipartisan rider in the 2011 federal budget bill ordered the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to reinstate its 2009 wolf delisting decision and immunized it from further court challenges.
"The fact is, after years of lawsuits, the delisting got stuck in unacceptable gridlock, acrimony and dispute," Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar said in a conference call Wednesday morning. "It was consuming resources that could be spent recovering for other species."
That means Montana and Idaho hunters will be back in the business of controlling wolf populations this fall. A bipartisan rider in the 2011 federal budget bill ordered the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to reinstate its 2009 wolf delisting decision and immunized it from further court challenges.
"The fact is, after years of lawsuits, the delisting got stuck in unacceptable gridlock, acrimony and dispute," Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar said in a conference call Wednesday morning. "It was consuming resources that could be spent recovering for other species."
#66
#67
don't celebrate just yet!!!
States left out of delisting decisions
Wyoming, Nevada, Colorado, Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, California, Oregon and Washington, Nebraska, Iowa, North Dakota, South Dakota and a number of other key states are not delisted, or will not be able to undertake proactive state wolf management activities, as a result of these delisting decisions. Additionally, concerns remain that ongoing federal involvement in state management decisions, could lead to further federal restrictions or even potentially lead to unnecessary relisting of wolves.
We agree with USFWS’s assessment that Gray Wolf populations have recovered and should be delisted. However, we remain very concerned that administrative delisting does nothing to stop the litigation that has been used repeatedly to derail previous final delisting rules. It takes just one group or individual to file a lawsuit to block wolf delisting. In fact, one group has already indicated they will not hesitate to challenge Western Great Lakes delisting in court. Given the newly filed wolf lawsuits it is clear that without Congressional action, open ended ESA lawsuits remain a serious concern for delisting of wolf populations in the Western Great Lakes.
Wyoming, Nevada, Colorado, Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, California, Oregon and Washington, Nebraska, Iowa, North Dakota, South Dakota and a number of other key states are not delisted, or will not be able to undertake proactive state wolf management activities, as a result of these delisting decisions. Additionally, concerns remain that ongoing federal involvement in state management decisions, could lead to further federal restrictions or even potentially lead to unnecessary relisting of wolves.
We agree with USFWS’s assessment that Gray Wolf populations have recovered and should be delisted. However, we remain very concerned that administrative delisting does nothing to stop the litigation that has been used repeatedly to derail previous final delisting rules. It takes just one group or individual to file a lawsuit to block wolf delisting. In fact, one group has already indicated they will not hesitate to challenge Western Great Lakes delisting in court. Given the newly filed wolf lawsuits it is clear that without Congressional action, open ended ESA lawsuits remain a serious concern for delisting of wolf populations in the Western Great Lakes.
#70
Such a beast! I personally have seen some beasts last week while out looking for elk sheds; The males that I seen were bigger than I ever imagined. They have became such a problem in such a short amount of time people are going to manage them wether they are given the "ok" or not...
-South
-South