Gilman man upset over lawsuit that could protect wolves
The Associated Press
A federal agency didn’t follow required procedures when giving Michigan and Wisconsin permission to kill wolves that attack livestock or pets, an animal protection group said with a lawsuit that has upset a central Wisconsin man.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service issued permits allowing the two states to use lethal control measures against problem wolves.
The Humane Society of the United States and 11 other organizations said the agency failed to notify the public and take comments before issuing the permits in a lawsuit, steps required under the Endangered Species Act.
The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources is clinging to wolves for the federal money that comes from protecting them, said Lawrence Krak of Gilman, founder of People Against Wolves.
“We have a DNR that is not representing the interest of the people,” he said.
Krak said he writes area lawmakers about wolves and distributes “No Wolves” bumper stickers.
“It’s not a prime wilderness anymore. Over 6 million people live here now, and what they do is the most important thing that goes on in this state, not preserving the wolves and all other damn things they’re so fond of,” he said. “Wisconsin is not what it is what was at that time when those things were native.”
The Fish and Wildlife Service in 2003 reclassified the wolf in most of the lower 48 states from endangered – on the brink of extinction – to threatened.
Environmentalist groups sued, contending the new designation was scientifically and procedurally flawed. A federal judge in Oregon agreed in January, restoring the wolf’s endangered status.
“The intentional killing of an endangered species is a drastic step, and one that should never be taken without first soliciting and carefully considering expert views about whether lethal control is really necessary,” said John Grandy, the humane society’s senior vice president of wildlife.
Georgia Parham, a spokeswoman for the Fish and Wildlife Service, said she could not discuss the lawsuit, which was filed in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C.
The suit seeks a court order to withdraw the permits and go through the process correctly.
Parham acknowledged public comments weren’t sought before the permits were issued but said the permits were linked to others issued previously. The agency is legally empowered to allow killing threatened or endangered species under some circumstances.
Patricia Lane, a humane society attorney, said lethal measures might be justified in extreme cases, but the permit issued to Michigan lets the state set traps without ensuring they would catch only wolves preying on livestock or pets.
Gray wolf numbers have surged in the upper Great Lakes region since the Endangered Species Act was approved in 1973. Scientists say about 3,800 live in Michigan, Minnesota and Wisconsin.