By STEVE CARMODY
Opponents of Michigan’s planned wolf hunt are training petition circulators this weekend for the effort to put a second referendum on the ballot.
A big part of the training will be to answer the question “Didn’t we already do this?”
The answer is yes….and no.
Last winter, wolf hunting opponents collected enough signatures to put the issue on the November 2014 ballot and sidetrack plans for a wolf hunt this fall. But state lawmakers passed a new law this Spring and put the hunt back on track.
“The first referendum was to restore protections to Michigan’s wolves,” says
Jill Fritz, with Keep Michigan Wolves Protected, “The second referendum is to restore our right to get protection for Michigan’s wolves and to speak out about all wildlife.”
Wolf hunt opponents have already started collecting the more than 200 thousand signatures they’ll need to put a second referendum on the 2014 ballot.]
The state plans to hold a wolf hunt later this year. Fritz doubts opponents will be able to collect enough signatures in time to stop it.
State wildlife officials hope this fall’s hunt will kill 43 wolves and reduce the threat to livestock and pets in the Upper Peninsula. There are less than 700 wolves in the U.P.