Lawsuits over wolf hunting filed in Mont., Wyo.
By MATTHEW BROWN and BEN NEARY – 14 hours ago
BILLINGS, Mont. (AP) — A pair of federal judges will decide which states in the Northern Rockies have enough gray wolves to allow public hunting, as the bitter debate over the region's wolves heads to courts in Wyoming and Montana.
Environmentalists filed a lawsuit in Missoula on Tuesday seeking to restore protections for more than 1,300 wolves in Montana and Idaho. The Obama administration in April upheld a Bush-era decision to take wolves off the endangered species list in those two states.
The lawsuit could block regulated wolf hunts slated to begin this fall and scuttle a plan to remove all the predators from part of north central Idaho.
Gray wolves were listed as endangered in 1974, after they had been wiped out across the lower 48 states in the early 20th century by hunting and government-sponsored poisoning. Following an intensive reintroduction program, there are now an estimated 1,645 wolves in the Northern Rockies, not including this year's pups. Read More
The original intent of the Endangered Species Act was to bring a population back to a certain level and then get it off the list. It wasn’t intended to protect species at all costs, indefinitely. If the wolf population grows unchecked, then Mother Nature will take over and control it for us. You see, she doesn’t like it when any species becomes overpopulated. In order to correct the situation, she introduces disease or starvation to kill some of them off. This method is much more painful and cruel than anything humans could use to control them. These wolf packs have grown faster than anyone predicted they would. It’s time to get the population in balance so all species can thrive.
Showing posts with label endangered species. Show all posts
Showing posts with label endangered species. Show all posts
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
Monday, April 13, 2009
Sage Grouse Debate
Suit says grazing, drilling rules threaten bird
Scott Sonner, Associated Press
Sunday, April 12, 2009
(04-12) 04:00 PDT Reno -- Conservationists say federal rules that allow livestock grazing and oil and gas development across 25 million acres of public land in the West are illegal because they fail to acknowledge the harm being done to sage grouse.
A lawsuit recently filed in federal court accuses the Bureau of Land Management of violating two major environmental laws and its own regulations by allowing commercial activities to continue on those lands in California, Nevada, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming and Utah.
But in a switch in strategy, the environmentalists aren't asking a judge to immediately halt those operations. They want to talk, and they think they may have a willing listener in the new Obama administration.
Ranchers and drillers said the suit is part of an effort to keep livestock, energy development and other commercial activities off an area of the West bigger than the state of Indiana.
"They are trying to tie up 25 million acres and close it down to livestock operators altogether," said Ronald Opsahl, a lawyer for the Mountain States Legal Foundation, which represents the Wyoming Stock Growers Association and the Petroleum Association of Wyoming. "As far as the scope of this case, it has to be unprecedented." Read More
This situation falls in line with an article I wrote last fall about the concept of “peak agriculture”. The concept is that there is a push to ban agriculture from certain areas in order to allegedly protect something else. In this case, there is an effort to eliminate 25 million acres of land from our available food and energy producing area. If things like this happen, people need to realize that this impacts our ability to produce food. We can’t replace these acres somewhere else. There is only so much land on this planet, and even less that can be used to grow food.
Scott Sonner, Associated Press
Sunday, April 12, 2009
(04-12) 04:00 PDT Reno -- Conservationists say federal rules that allow livestock grazing and oil and gas development across 25 million acres of public land in the West are illegal because they fail to acknowledge the harm being done to sage grouse.
A lawsuit recently filed in federal court accuses the Bureau of Land Management of violating two major environmental laws and its own regulations by allowing commercial activities to continue on those lands in California, Nevada, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming and Utah.
But in a switch in strategy, the environmentalists aren't asking a judge to immediately halt those operations. They want to talk, and they think they may have a willing listener in the new Obama administration.
Ranchers and drillers said the suit is part of an effort to keep livestock, energy development and other commercial activities off an area of the West bigger than the state of Indiana.
"They are trying to tie up 25 million acres and close it down to livestock operators altogether," said Ronald Opsahl, a lawyer for the Mountain States Legal Foundation, which represents the Wyoming Stock Growers Association and the Petroleum Association of Wyoming. "As far as the scope of this case, it has to be unprecedented." Read More
This situation falls in line with an article I wrote last fall about the concept of “peak agriculture”. The concept is that there is a push to ban agriculture from certain areas in order to allegedly protect something else. In this case, there is an effort to eliminate 25 million acres of land from our available food and energy producing area. If things like this happen, people need to realize that this impacts our ability to produce food. We can’t replace these acres somewhere else. There is only so much land on this planet, and even less that can be used to grow food.
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
Managing The Wolf
States will discuss wolf strategy
By JOAN BARRONStar-Tribune staff writer
CHEYENNE -- Representatives of the states of Wyoming, Montana and Idaho will decide their strategy on the wolf decision Friday during a telephone conference call, Wyoming Attorney General Bruce Salzburg said Wednesday.
Last Friday U.S. District Judge Donald Molloy, in Missoula, Mont., granted a preliminary injunction sought by environmental groups to restore the protection for wolves in the three states and halt wolf hunts.
In March, the estimated 2,000 gray wolves in the region were removed from the endangered species list. Read More
The wolf population has recovered quicker than probably anyone thought it would. It is to a point now that it needs to be managed in order to maintain a proper balance. The increased interaction between wolves and livestock and livestock owners shows the need for a management plan rather than just letting them over-populate. With a more than stable population, now is the time to put that management plan into place so those that are feeding these wolves don’t become endangered.
By JOAN BARRONStar-Tribune staff writer
CHEYENNE -- Representatives of the states of Wyoming, Montana and Idaho will decide their strategy on the wolf decision Friday during a telephone conference call, Wyoming Attorney General Bruce Salzburg said Wednesday.
Last Friday U.S. District Judge Donald Molloy, in Missoula, Mont., granted a preliminary injunction sought by environmental groups to restore the protection for wolves in the three states and halt wolf hunts.
In March, the estimated 2,000 gray wolves in the region were removed from the endangered species list. Read More
The wolf population has recovered quicker than probably anyone thought it would. It is to a point now that it needs to be managed in order to maintain a proper balance. The increased interaction between wolves and livestock and livestock owners shows the need for a management plan rather than just letting them over-populate. With a more than stable population, now is the time to put that management plan into place so those that are feeding these wolves don’t become endangered.
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