Stehekin Heritage Grizzly Bear Update
Yakima Herald Dec.
19, 2017
“Official: North Cascades grizzly bear recovery
work halted”
“A decision on whether to bring grizzly bears back to the
North Cascades won’t be made as soon as planned.
“Efforts to restore
the predators to their former habitat are on hold indefinitely, according to
Jack Oelfke, the chief of natural and cultural resources at North Cascades
National Park. Along with others, he’s waiting for additional instructions from
the Department of Interior and the two lead agencies on the project, the
National Park Service and U.S. Fish
and Wildlife Service.
"In January, the two groups released a proposal outlining three
options for returning a sustainable population of the bears to their former
habitat, with a final draft of the proposal set for this fall and an official
decision expected by January. Under the proposal, bears from Montana and
British Columbia would be brought here and released to live in 9,800-square
miles of remote forests covering portions of seven counties stretching from the
Canadian border south to Interstate 90.”
MISSOULA, Mont. (AP) —
“Work to restore grizzly bears to the North Cascades Ecosystem
has been stopped by Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke's office, a national parks
official told a Montana newspaper.
“But Zinke spokeswoman Heather Swift told The Associated Press
Tuesday that Zinke did not direct a stop work order on the environmental
review. Swift didn't provide further details.
“North Cascades National Park Superintendent Karen
Taylor-Goodrich told the Interagency Grizzly Bear Committee last week that her
staff had been asked to halt work on its environmental review, the
Missoulian reported.
“She said the order also stalls discussions with Canadian
wildlife managers who oversee a similar grizzly recovery process in British
Columbia.
"We were in the process of evaluating public comment,"
Taylor-Goodrich said of the stop order. "We're in year three of the
process and all the public scoping has been done. The draft EIS went out for
public review in spring and we've received about 127,000 comments."
The two links below provide information on the proposed importation of grizzly bears into the North Cascades.
