proposed a rule<\/a>\u00a0that combined the seven separate grizzly populations in the lower 48 states into one distinct population segment. It also revised the 4(d) rule to allow state wildlife agencies and landowners to remove or kill grizzly bears that were perceived as threatening livestock or landowners. That rule was never finalized.<\/p>\nSome of the statements made during Tuesday\u2019s live announcement hint that the revised 4(d) rule may allow the wildlife agencies of the three states to take over complete control of grizzly removal.<\/p>\n
\u201cToday, we celebrate – we\u2019ve gotten to the recovery finish line. But tomorrow, we get back to work. And we will maintain the status of this grizzly bear in a recovered status with the same commitment, the same respect and the same grit,\u201d said Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks Director Christy Clark.<\/p>\n
Standing at a lectern with a sign that said \u201cReturn management to the states,\u201d Governor Greg Gianforte called grizzly bear recovery one of the great American conservation successes.<\/p>\n
\u201cWith this success has come a challenge \u2013 bears have expanded into new areas and conflicts have increased with farmers, ranchers, recreationists, and residents. Returning management to the states is a welcome change and Montana is ready to lead to balance conservation and the safety of our communities,\u201d Gianforte said.<\/p>\n
Of the seven recovery populations, only two – the Greater Yellowstone and Northern Continental Divide – have seen their populations grow to where each has around 1,000 bears. The other five areas have only 50 to 60 bears or no bears at all. And due to minimal protection for bears between the recovery areas, there is little to no migration between the populations, which is necessary for genetic health.<\/p>\n
Wildlife advocates expressed frustration that officials created a lot of hoopla but didn\u2019t reveal Tuesday what the 4(d) change would be. But they deny that the grizzly bear is recovered or that the states will manage the bear responsibly.<\/p>\n
Earthjustice cautioned that\u00a0handing\u00a0greater\u00a0management of the species over to\u00a0the states could jeopardize continued recovery efforts.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is extremely concerning that the Trump administration is seeking to hand over more management of the species to hostile Northern Rockies states,\u201d said Jenny Harbine, Earthjustice\u2019s Northern Rockies Office attorney. \u201cWhile we need to see the details of this proposal, it could put grizzly bears at greater risk at a time of record mortality for the species. Anti-science political maneuvers should not be allowed to thwart grizzly bear recovery. If this proposal will further harm the species, we are prepared to take the administration to court.\u201d<\/p>\n
Lizzy Pennock of WildEarth Guardians said under the current 4(d) rule, grizzly bears in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem have seen a record number of deaths in the past several years. Weakening the 4(d) rule would likely lead to more deaths.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis evening\u2019s press conference made clear that even these three governors and the Secretary of Interior recognize that grizzly bears still need protection, no matter how many times anti-wildlife politicians repeat the falsehood that grizzlies are ready to be delisted,\u201d Pennock said. \u201cThe best scientific evidence available\u2014the standard under the ESA\u2014unequivocally shows that grizzly bears still need continued federal protections against killing and habitat destruction.\u201d<\/p>\n
When the Interior Department attempted to delist the Greater Yellowstone population in 2017, Wyoming was ready to schedule a grizzly bear hunt that same year. Idaho also proposed a hunt but had a quota of one bear. The courts ruled the delisting was in violation of the Endangered Species Act.<\/p>\n
Greg LeDonne, Idaho director of Western Watersheds Project, said there are an increasing number of human activities threatening grizzly bears\u2014habitat destruction and modification from increased mining and logging, heavy human-caused mortality related to the livestock industry, and the isolated nature of some populations.With one of the slowest reproductive rates of terrestrial mammals, the grizzly bear population cannot endure if mismanaged by the states.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe know what state management will look like for grizzly bears because Wyoming, Idaho and Montana have already told us what they plan to do,\u201d LeDonne said. \u201cState management will lead to high mortalities for grizzly bears because these states consistently ignore science and ethics, promote misinformation, and enact laws and regulations to permit the killing of carnivores by any means they deem necessary.\u201d<\/p>\n
Contact reporter Laura Lundquist at\u00a0lundquist@missoulacurrent.com.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Laura Lundquist (Missoula Current) The states of Montana, Idaho and Wyoming are proposing to take greater control of…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":766450,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[51],"tags":[19232,192,73143,76449,79,201],"class_list":["post-766449","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-wildlife","tag-conservation","tag-environment","tag-grizzly-bears","tag-montana-today","tag-science","tag-wildlife"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/766449","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=766449"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/766449\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/766450"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=766449"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=766449"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=766449"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}