Counties get wolf predator request
By BUDDY SMITH
Ravalli Republic
HAMILTON – A Pray man’s request that Montana’s 56 counties adopt
resolutions calling for a tougher stance on gray wolves managed by the
federal government has reached Ravalli County.
Commissioners Tuesday morning briefly discussed an e-mail sent by the
Friends of the Northern Yellowstone Elk Herd, Inc.’s chairman Robert T.
Fanning Jr. to Montana counties, in anticipation of a Feb. 20 meeting of
county commissioners in Helena. In the letter, Fanning called on officials
to adopt resolutions under the Endangered Species Act that, among other
things, would ask the “Secretary of Agriculture for immediate and
meaningful predator control.”
He also cited a recent resolution adopted by Carbon County commissioners,
declaring wolves under federal management as “problem predators” to
establish controls to protect livestock there.
Fanning asked that Montana counties adopt resolutions in anticipation of
protracted legal battles over removing wolves from the federal Endangered
Species Act. He also wants them to intervene on behalf of the federal
government in an environmental group’s lawsuit, which Fanning contended is
“blocking wolf delisting,” and to have all Montana county commissions
write to Gov. Martz asking her to request in writing to Interior
Department Secretary Gale Norton that wolves be immediately taken off the
endangered species list.
Ravalli County commissioners agreed to discuss it with members of the
county’s Right to Farm Committee “to digest” the issue.
“I don’t want to put together a resolution at the moment until we
understand this more fully, what the consequences are,” Commissioner Alan
Thompson said.
Thompson said Ravalli County seems to have “dodged a bullet” when it comes
to livestock depredations, but he noted troubles with wolves and livestock
in the Ninemile and Polaris areas.
Commissioner Greg Chilcott said he “certainly wants to protect our ag
producers, our livestock,” and would be willing to consider some sort of
resolution, but he wanted to hear from the local agriculture committee.
Chilcott and Lund said during and after a morning discussion that their
understanding of the resolution request by Fanning is “to delist wolves,”
though they both said they hadn’t had time yet to fully consider the
e-mail and multiple pages of accompanying text and become well-versed with
it.
Asked about the “predator control” part of Fanning’s letter, Chilcott said
he wasn’t interested in “making a national statement,” but he was
interested in addressing local issues and the county could decide to adopt
its own resolution to address wolf concerns, if it so desired, though not
necessarily what was urged by Fanning.
He said any conclusions are premature, though.
“I haven’t made a predetermination,” Chilcott said. “I’m going to get
input from people who are impacted.”
The predator tag for gray wolves is controversial, and that designation in
Wyoming’s plan for managing the species has kept the federal government
from moving forward with lifting federal protections for the animals in
the northern Rockies.
The plans – which say how Wyoming, Montana and Idaho would manage wolves
once they’re removed from the endangered species list and placed under
state control – were approved for Montana and Idaho, but the U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service said this month that delisting can’t begin until Wyoming
changes its wolf predator status, which officials said would allow
unregulated shooting of wolves in some places of that state, much like
coyotes.
Fanning, in an e-mail forwarded to the county, said he believes the
Secretary of Agriculture has absolute authority superseding the ESA when
states or counties “petition directly for predator control in defense” of
wild game herds or livestock. He accuses the Fish and Wildlife Service of
wanting control by rejecting the notion of predator status for wolves in
Wyoming.
Fanning said he believes wolves could remain federally protected for
several more years because of legal battles, but in the meantime their
numbers and range will expand.