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Archive for the ‘Wolf Legislation’ Category

What is your opinion about delisting wolves in Montana and Idaho?

Posted in Wolf Legislation on April 22, 2011| 16 Comments »


Recently, wolves in Montana and Idaho have been removed from the Endangered Species Act, leaving the door wide open for wolf hunting. Wolf opponents such as Montana Governor Brian Schweitzer, Senators Jon Tester, Senator Ken Miller (who recently stated, “KILL EM’ ALL!”, and Idaho Governor Butch Otter’s efforts will end the lives of hundreds of wolf families, including pregnant females and wolf pups.

Do you believe Montana and Idaho wolves should be hunted? Why or why not? Wolf Preservation appreciates your respectful input on this critical issue!

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Disgrace: Gutting the Endangered Species Act and Killing Wolves

Posted in Wolf Legislation on April 10, 2011| 1 Comment »


Andrew Wetzler of the “Natural Resources Defense Council” reports the following:

“The Associated Press is reporting that Senator John Tester got the go-ahead to attach a rider to last night’s budget deal that will strip endangered species protections from gray wolves in the Northern Rockies. As a result, Montana and Idaho (whose legislature recently passed an absurd “declaration of wolf emergency bill”) are very likely to move forward with plans to kill hundreds of wolves in the region.

This is a huge setback for one of America’s greatest conservation success stories and a significant blow to the Endangered Species Act and the principle it embodies: that science and law, not the whims of politics, should dictate what animals and plants are worthy of federal protection.

Now is not the time to give up, however. We will keep fighting for wolves and, should this short-sighted rider move forward in the budget, NRDC will carefully review whatever language Congress enacts and assess our options. We will be closely monitoring the state management of wolves and the federal agencies that want to help the states carry out their plans. And we will keep fighting to defend the Endangered Species Act and all the living things it protects.”

*Tell Senator Jon Tester your thoughts about his plans to circumvent the Endangered Species at at: http://tester.senate.gov/Contact/index.cfm

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Judge Molloy Denies Wolf Settlement

Posted in Wolf Legislation on April 9, 2011| 2 Comments »


Wolf Warriors on Facebook states, “Judge Molloy has ruled against the wolf settlement, which would remove wolves from the Endangered Species list in Idaho and Montana but would keep them listed in Wyoming, Oregon, Washington, and Utah.”

April 9, 2011 — Thanks to Ken Cole of Wildlife News for providing the information below:

Molloy denies wolf settlement
Says that the agreement is illegal
Today Montana District Court Judge Donald Molloy denied the settlement agreement put forth by 10 of the 14 environmental groups who sued to keep wolves protected under the Endangered Species Act. The settling parties had asked the judge to set aside his previous ruling which found that the USFWS 2009 delisting rule was illegal because it split the distinct population segment (DPS) of wolves in the Northern Rockies and left them listed in Wyoming. The Endangered Species Act does not allow the USFWS to partially delist a DPS.

“[The] District Court is still constrained by the “rule of law.” No matter how useful a course of conduct might be to achieve a certain end, no matter how beneficial or noble the end, the limit of power granted to the District Court must abide by the responsibilities that flow from past political decisions made by the Congress. The law cannot be ignored to accommodate a partial settlement. The rule of law does not afford the District Court the power to decide a legal issue but then at the behest of some of the litigants to reverse course and permit what the Congress has forbidden because some of those interested have sensibly, or for other reasons, decided to lay a dispute to rest.”

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Wolf fearing lawmakers want Idaho to declare a disaster emergency

Posted in Wolf Legislation on April 2, 2011| 3 Comments »


Ridiculous reactionary politics, lies, needs to be contronted head on.

“In the interests of political gains, lawmakers of Idaho are attempting to declare a disaster emergency which would include enlisting local law enforcement officers to eradicate wolf packs” says Writer Brian Ertz of The Wildlife News.

He adds, “The outright absurdity of the extreme reactionism that continues to threaten wolves can often seem too outrageous to be real. We hope that it’s just some marginal voice and that maybe by ignoring it, it will go away.
Wolf management in the Rockies is a very real culminating crisis prompted more from the imagination of zealots than from anything we can objectively quantify. Born uniquely in the minds of men more than in the actual behavior of wolves.
Unfortunately, the crisis is real – bounties are being proposed in state legislatures, Wildlife Services considered gassing pups in dens, citizens are being encouraged to defy federal law and to kill wolves in both Idaho and Montana.

It’s lawless, it’s absurd, it’s anti-rational insofar as it’s a response to a real condition prompted by wolves’ actual behavior … But it’s perfectly rational politically – thus far it has been rewarded politically by both anti-wolfers and implicitly by some pro-wolfers’ capitulation alike – it’s a paradigm that will prevail under state management of wolves should wolf advocates lose the effort to keep wolves federally protected – because the sad truth is that in the halls of state legislatures, reason will have no voice.” (http://wolves.wordpress.com/2011/04/01/wolf-fearing-id-lawmakers-want-emergency-declared/)

Wolf Preservation wants your responses! Please comment.

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Montana and Idaho Wolves Abandoned

Posted in Wolf Current Events, Wolf Legislation on March 27, 2011| 1 Comment »


Bow hunting wolves in Montana and Idaho and discouraging people not to arrest poachers.  We cannot stand for this!

Thanks to “Howling for Justice” for providing the following information:

“This is the face of trophy hunting, a wolf brutally shot to death for sport. A painful, horrific death.

Wolves don’t go quietly. Can you imagine this happening to your beloved dog?  Since wolves and dogs share 99.8 percent of their DNA, it’s not hard to do.

I know it’s disturbing but this is what Montana and Idaho wolves are facing if the deal, brokered by the “10 settling groups” and USFWS. becomes reality. Or if Congress tacks a delisting rider onto the budget bill.  Or if one of the myriad of anti-wolf bills squeaks through, all wolves could be delisted. Either way, wolves are under attack from all sides. It’s up to us to continue to fight for them.

The budget extension in Congress ends on April 8th. There could be another attempt to push a wolf delisting rider through. We have to gear up for the next  push. I know everyone is emotionally exhausted, especially since the “settlement” was revealed on March 18th but that is out of our hands, it’s Judge Molloy’s decision. We have to focus on Congress and their wolf delisting antics.

In 2010 Montana added a wolf archery and back country wolf rifle  season to their hunt. They also raised their quota from 75 to 186 wolves.  Idaho’s bag of tricks included calling, baiting and trapping wolves, allowing snares and leg hold traps.

Who knows how much worse it will get?  Idaho Governor Otter made these statements in October 2010.

Idaho Governor Rejects ESA Wolf Management

Posted on: 10/24/10

In another salvo of the wolf-wars, Idaho’s Governor Otter has ordered state wildlife managers to “relinquish their duty to arrest poachers or to even investigate when wolves are killed illegally.” Under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) Idaho wildlife officials are the “designated agent” for investigating wolf deaths in the state.

This means Idaho Department of Fish and Game managers will no longer perform statewide monitoring for wolves, conduct investigations into illegal killings, provide law enforcement when wolves are poached or participate in a program that responds to livestock depredations. “

http://howlingforjustice.wordpress.com/2011/03/26/montana-and-idaho-wolves-abandoned/

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U.S. Senate shut down HR 1; this time, the power of advocacy prevails for wolves!

Posted in Wolf Legislation, Wolf Preservation Efforts on March 1, 2011| 1 Comment »


The Power of advocacy prevails!  Thanks to “Living with Wolves” for providing the information below!

“With your help, HR 1 has failed!

 Less than an hour ago the U.S. Senate shut down HR 1!  This budget bill, a Continuing Resolution,  had seemingly countless riders attached to it, including the one written by Idaho Representative Mike Simpson.  Without ever mentioning wolves even once, Representative Simpson’s rider (Section 1713), would have removed wolves from the protections of the Endangered Species Act and would have also prohibited the issue from any future judicial review.  Your calls helped bring to the attention of the Senators reviewing this 359 page resolution what the cryptically written Section 1713 was about.  Your efforts helped, your opinions were heard.

Wolves are no longer hidden in this budget bill, but it is eminent, that in the very near future there will be similar legislation introduced either in the form of another rider, like this one, or in the form of a freestanding bill, where once again the protection of wolves will be under attack again.  So the battle over wolves on Capitol Hill continues, but today is a good day for wolves.

If you wish to follow up and thank the Senators you contacted for today’s outcome, we have reattached the list of phone numbers below.   

And again, we thank you, and the wolves of America thank you as well!”

-LIVING WITH WOLVES- 

 

http://myemail.constantcontact.com/THANK-YOU–from-Living-with-Wolves.html?soid=1102459385062&aid=AX8HMFrZJ_k

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New in the Press: Changes Sought to Mexican Gray Wolf Plan

Posted in Wolf Current Events, Wolf Legislation on December 5, 2010| Leave a Comment »


LAS CRUCES — Twelve Democratic members of Congress, including New Mexico Rep. Martin Heinrich, have sent a letter to Interior Secretary Ken Salazar calling for changes to the federally run Mexican gray wolf recovery project aimed at bolstering the wild lobo population.
       
The letter calls for five key recommendations. They include the release of 22 wolves — eight in Arizona and 14 in New Mexico — that are considered eligible for release under the program’s rules; and the retrieval of telemetry receivers loaned to private parties that alert ranchers and property owners when wolves are nearby.
       
Some conservationists believe the telemetry receivers can be used to locate and kill Mexican gray wolves. Thirty-five wolves have been killed illegally since the program was launched in 1998 with the release of wolves into a national forest in southeast Arizona.
       
In the Dec. 1 letter to Salazar, the members of Congress call for reforms “before it becomes too late and this unique and vital animal can no longer be saved from extinction.”
       
They add: “The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service persists in pursuing failed policies and repudiated management practices, while delaying positive change, even as the sole Mexican wolf population in the wild continues a five-year decline.”

Along with Heinrich, the letter was signed by Rep. Raul Grijalva, D-Ariz., Rep. Dennis Kucinich, D-Ohio, four representatives from northern California, and others from Tennessee, New York, Georgia, Indiana and Colorado.
 …      
       
The letter also asks Fish and Wildlife to release a completed draft environmental assessment that could lead to a new policy allowing captive wolves to be released directly into New Mexico. Under current rules, wolves new to the wild can only be released initially into Arizona, with New Mexico reserved for the relocation of previously captured wolves.
       
In addition, the letter urges the agency to assemble a scientific team that would produce a new draft recovery plan by next month establishing a formal goal for the wild lobo population.
  
To read the full article, published in the Albuquerque Journal on December 4, 2010, click here (Non-subscribers can scroll down and use the Trial Access Pass button).   

Please write a letter to the editor praising these legislators for their informed and courageous stance at a time when other members of Congress are pushing legislation to strip Mexican wolves of endangered species protections!!

And please send a quick email to let Congressmen Heinrich and Grijalva, and the other signers know how much you appreciate their support for lobos:
Congressman Raul Grijalva
Congressman Martin Heinrich
Congressman Dennis Kucinich
Congresswoman Barbara Lee
Congressman Jared Polis
Congressman Andre Carson
Congressman Sam Farr
Congressman Pete Stark
Congresswoman Nita Lowey
Congressman Mike Honda
Congressman John Lewis
Congressman Steve Cohen

Please, it is critical that you follow the link below and write to these Congressman!  Thanks to www.mexicanwolves.org for providing this information.

http://www.mexicanwolves.org/index.php/news/298/51/New-in-the-Press-Changes-Sought-to-Mexican-Gray-Wolf-Plan

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OUTRAGE: Politicians may decide wolves fate, not science!

Posted in Wolf Current Events, Wolf Legislation on December 1, 2010| Leave a Comment »


Western Watersheds Project states, “According to a November 29 article in the Washington Post, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar made a back-room pledge to Western governors yesterday that the administration will back congressional efforts to strip gray wolves of their endangered species status.

Salazar also issued a public statement yesterday that he supported legislative delisting for gray wolves. The Endangered Species Act requires that decisions on delisting be based on the best available science, and never before has a species been taken off the endangered species list by an act of Congress that would amend the act.

This hugely disappointing idea coming from an administration that has made promises to base decisions on science violates the integrity of the Endangered Species Act by setting a destructive precedent for removing endangered species protections from any animal that faces political opposition.

Supporters of wolves and other wildlife need to flood the White House and their U.S. Senators with protests against the Secretary’s plan to use Congress for an end-run around the Endangered Species Act. 

Please, call or write right away and tell everyone you know to do the same. None of our wildlife is safe if the Obama administration is willing to let political considerations trump science and law.”  This is urgent, please visit the site below and contact your U.S. Senator and the White House immediately!

http://hosted.verticalresponse.com/435877/c56b3aa028/1454001502/ee35a54549/

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NEW threats to wolves!

Posted in Wolf Current Events, Wolf Legislation on November 22, 2010| Leave a Comment »


“After the long and successful effort to re-establish wolves back into their historic ranges in the northern Rocky Mountains, wolves in the wild face a new and critical challenge.  Several members of the Senate and Congress, representing the states of Montana, Texas, Utah, Idaho, Wyoming and others, have introduced bills that will weaken the protections afforded rare species under the Endangered Species Act, and result in wolves in the northern Rockies being taken off the ESA list. This latest attack is a result of states wanting full control over the management of wild wolves. 
 
Wolf management was taken away from Montana and Idaho and returned to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) on August 5, 2010, as a result of a lawsuit against the USFWS for removing federal protection for wolves in these states. Montana and Idaho had management control of wolves in their states for four months, during which over 200 wolves were legally killed in the hunting season.
 
The Endangered Species Act provides strong protection for species in peril. It was created to bring species which are on the brink of extinction back to a healthy population level based on the best available science. Decisions involving species recovery – including wolf recovery – should be made in accordance with the ESA, and not by Congress. Congress should NOT be managing wildlife on a species by species basis, which sets a bad precedent for wildlife conservation in our nation.”
Thanks to “Wolf Haven” for providing this information!  Please follow the link below to urge Senate and House Representatives to solidify the Endangered Species Act!

http://app.e2ma.net/app2/campaigns/archived/28823/bbdf9a86f227fd4006d46405bf5d0d59/

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Action Alert: The Assault On The Endangered Species Act Has Begun…

Posted in Wolf Current Events, Wolf Legislation, Wolf Preservation Efforts on September 27, 2010| Leave a Comment »


“Are we going to sit by and let politicians use wolves to further their political ambitions? Are we going to allow them to strip gray wolves of their ESA protections?   The assault on the ESA has begun and we better be ready to fight. That means calling every senator and congressman, as many times as necessary, to defeat any and all attempts to remove gray wolves’ ESA protections. It may mean organizing  pro-wolf rallies across America to show support for wolves.   

There’s been coalition building by Montana FWP with ranching and hunting lobbies, to find ways around Judge Molloy’s ruling. There’s wolf hysteria in Idaho County, Idaho, asking the Governor to allow wolves to be shot on sight.(that was tried once before).

The latest and most popular assault on gray wolves is coming from the legislative branch. Montana’s Representative Denny Rehburg (who has a dead, stuffed wolf in his DC office) along with Utah’s Reps. Jim Matheson, D-Utah, and Jason Chaffetz, R-Utah, are signing onto the anti-wolf House Bill 6028, which aims to strip wolves of their ESA protections. The bill was drafted by a Texas Congressman, lord only knows why, since there are no wolves in Texas. But it’s fairly obvious this is a political ploy to garner support from the “hook and bullet crowd”, right before the November elections.”

Thanks to “Howling for Justice” for providing this information!  Please click on the link and follow rest of story.  Write and letter or e-mail these senators to help protest HR 6028 (a law that would allow hunters to kill wolves, even though they are an endangered species)!

http://howlingforjustice.wordpress.com/2010/09/27/action-alert-the-assault-on-the-endangered-species-act-has-begun-2/

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