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Deal removes obstacle to wolf delisting
Wyoming likely to be included with Idaho and Montana in process to remove species from endangered list
CHEYENNE, Wyo. — The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Wyoming have reached an agreement that will make removing wolves from the endangered species list in Idaho and Montana easier.
Gov. Dave Freudenthal announced Thursday that his office has submitted a draft wolf management plan to the federal agency. Mitch King, the agency's regional director, said the plan should allow Wyoming to be included with Montana and Idaho in the process of removing federal protections for wolves — possibly as soon as early next year.
"I'm elated. I've said all along that my preference would be to delist the entire listing population segment at once," King said. "I think we can go ahead and finish the process and getthe public comment in."
Thursday's announcement marks a break in a long stalemate between Wyoming and the federal government about the delisting of wolves, which were reintroduced in the Yellowstone region in the 1990s.
Wyoming's inclusion in the delisting means the wolves in the entire recovery area would be up for delisting. This gives the federal government a stronger legal case to fend off challenges to the decision. Endangered species have been rarely delisted along state lines, so including Wyoming eliminates a strong argument for keeping wolves in the Northern Rockies on the list.
The federal agency will take comments on Wyoming's plan and make a final decision sometime this year. Then it would be incorporated into the delisting proposal the agency announced in January. The agreement keeps the schedule on track, said Sharon Rose, a Fish and Wildlife Service spokeswoman.
The federal government is requiring Montana, Idaho and Wyoming to have plans in place for managing wolves after the animals are removed from endangered species protections.
The federal agency has already accepted wolf plans submitted by Idaho and Montana. But until now, Fish and Wildlife had not formally accepted a plan submitted by Wyoming, because that plan would have allowed wolves to be shot on sight in much of the state.
Wyoming took the federal government to court over the issue in 2004. That lawsuit remains pending even while the state enacted a new wolf management law this spring.
The federal agency has been calling upon the state in recent months to submit a specific wolf management plan. But Freudenthal has said recently that the new law stood as the clearest statement on how the state intended to manage the animals.
On Thursday, King said his agency integrated elements of the new law with the state's 2003 wolf management plan to come up with a new management plan that he presented to the state.
Freudenthal reviewed the federal proposal and wrote to King on Thursday that the federal approach is a fair representation of the state's position. Freudenthal said he's optimistic that the new plan will advance the progress of delisting Wyoming's wolves.
"I am encouraged that we have solved your demand that we submit a wolf management plan," Freudenthal said.
The law the state enacted this spring gave Freudenthal the authority to negotiate with federal officials to determine the boundaries of a permanent wolf management area in which wolves would be managed by the state as trophy game animals.
Outside the permanent management area, the new law calls for wolves to be treated as predators that could be shot on sight. Wolves would be protected in Yellowstone National Park and adjoining wilderness areas.
The proposed management plan that Freudenthal and the federal agency have agreed upon calls for accepting the federal agency's proposal for a wolf management area in northwestern Wyoming that's larger than one the state had suggested.
"I just finally had to tell the governor that from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife perspective, that boundary was the only thing that we could find acceptable," King said.
In his letter to King, Freudenthal states, "I remain unhappy with the boundary line but accept your representation that no other boundary is acceptable. Hopefully, this can be revisited in later years after delisting has proven successful."
Freudenthal also notes in his letter that several conditions in the state law that passed this spring must be satisfied before the Wyoming Game and Fish Commission can consider the adoption of the draft wolf management plan.
The new Wyoming law specifies that the law won't go into effect until the federal protections are removed for wolves in the state.
The state law also won't go into effect until the state's pending lawsuit over its original wolf management plan is resolved. Finally, the law specifies that it won't remain in effect past next February unless the federal government has given the state more control over wolves by then.
Freudenthal states in his letter to King that the preconditions "remain in effect unless modified by the Legislature."
-Idaho Statesman 5/25/07
Wyoming likely to be included with Idaho and Montana in process to remove species from endangered list
CHEYENNE, Wyo. — The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Wyoming have reached an agreement that will make removing wolves from the endangered species list in Idaho and Montana easier.
Gov. Dave Freudenthal announced Thursday that his office has submitted a draft wolf management plan to the federal agency. Mitch King, the agency's regional director, said the plan should allow Wyoming to be included with Montana and Idaho in the process of removing federal protections for wolves — possibly as soon as early next year.
"I'm elated. I've said all along that my preference would be to delist the entire listing population segment at once," King said. "I think we can go ahead and finish the process and getthe public comment in."
Thursday's announcement marks a break in a long stalemate between Wyoming and the federal government about the delisting of wolves, which were reintroduced in the Yellowstone region in the 1990s.
Wyoming's inclusion in the delisting means the wolves in the entire recovery area would be up for delisting. This gives the federal government a stronger legal case to fend off challenges to the decision. Endangered species have been rarely delisted along state lines, so including Wyoming eliminates a strong argument for keeping wolves in the Northern Rockies on the list.
The federal agency will take comments on Wyoming's plan and make a final decision sometime this year. Then it would be incorporated into the delisting proposal the agency announced in January. The agreement keeps the schedule on track, said Sharon Rose, a Fish and Wildlife Service spokeswoman.
The federal government is requiring Montana, Idaho and Wyoming to have plans in place for managing wolves after the animals are removed from endangered species protections.
The federal agency has already accepted wolf plans submitted by Idaho and Montana. But until now, Fish and Wildlife had not formally accepted a plan submitted by Wyoming, because that plan would have allowed wolves to be shot on sight in much of the state.
Wyoming took the federal government to court over the issue in 2004. That lawsuit remains pending even while the state enacted a new wolf management law this spring.
The federal agency has been calling upon the state in recent months to submit a specific wolf management plan. But Freudenthal has said recently that the new law stood as the clearest statement on how the state intended to manage the animals.
On Thursday, King said his agency integrated elements of the new law with the state's 2003 wolf management plan to come up with a new management plan that he presented to the state.
Freudenthal reviewed the federal proposal and wrote to King on Thursday that the federal approach is a fair representation of the state's position. Freudenthal said he's optimistic that the new plan will advance the progress of delisting Wyoming's wolves.
"I am encouraged that we have solved your demand that we submit a wolf management plan," Freudenthal said.
The law the state enacted this spring gave Freudenthal the authority to negotiate with federal officials to determine the boundaries of a permanent wolf management area in which wolves would be managed by the state as trophy game animals.
Outside the permanent management area, the new law calls for wolves to be treated as predators that could be shot on sight. Wolves would be protected in Yellowstone National Park and adjoining wilderness areas.
The proposed management plan that Freudenthal and the federal agency have agreed upon calls for accepting the federal agency's proposal for a wolf management area in northwestern Wyoming that's larger than one the state had suggested.
"I just finally had to tell the governor that from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife perspective, that boundary was the only thing that we could find acceptable," King said.
In his letter to King, Freudenthal states, "I remain unhappy with the boundary line but accept your representation that no other boundary is acceptable. Hopefully, this can be revisited in later years after delisting has proven successful."
Freudenthal also notes in his letter that several conditions in the state law that passed this spring must be satisfied before the Wyoming Game and Fish Commission can consider the adoption of the draft wolf management plan.
The new Wyoming law specifies that the law won't go into effect until the federal protections are removed for wolves in the state.
The state law also won't go into effect until the state's pending lawsuit over its original wolf management plan is resolved. Finally, the law specifies that it won't remain in effect past next February unless the federal government has given the state more control over wolves by then.
Freudenthal states in his letter to King that the preconditions "remain in effect unless modified by the Legislature."
-Idaho Statesman 5/25/07
I have also talked with a fellow who was working on a ranch not too terribly far from you who got the pleasure of filling a couple of depredation tags on wolves. Sounded like 'hunting' to me... 
