Finding a way forward on wolf management

From the Casper Star-Tribune:

Sunday, August 24, 2008 2:08 AM MDT

CHRIS COLLIGAN
Perspective

As the dust settles on a federal court’s reinstatement of Endangered Species protection for gray wolves, one thing is clear: Wyoming must chart a new course for achieving balanced, science-based wolf management.

Wyoming has made great strides in its efforts to manage wolves appropriately. Now we have the opportunity to build common ground among those affected by wolves by developing a plan that will again move delisting forward.

Ultimately, the best long-term solution is a state plan that manages wolves as an integral part of our wildlife heritage. Neither wolves nor the people who live, work and play here are best served by federal protection. However, Wyoming will have to make substantive changes if wolves are to be permanently removed from Endangered Species Act protection and managed by the Wyoming Game and Fish Department.

Though the Greater Yellowstone Coalition was not a party to the lawsuit asking for the re-listing of wolves, the judge’s ruling clearly outlined the flaws in Wyoming’s management plan. Our laws and plans directing wolf management -- especially the Predator Zone, where roaming wolves could be killed at any time for any reason -- were identified as a threat to healthy, sustainable populations and a significant impediment to delisting.

Wyoming can either lead the way by correcting these key issues or continue the costly and polarizing battles in court, a tiresome path that will only ensure that the federal government manages wolves far into the future. Such a protracted legal fight will only leave Wyoming residents feeling a loss of control, breeding the resentment that plagues us now.

Is that really the choice we want to make?

Instead, Wyoming should revise its plan, based on sound science and wildlife management principles n which are not to be confused with predator control. Wolf populations can be managed as trophy game statewide, much like black bear and mountain lions, without harming the interests of hunters or ranchers.

The process for delisting may seem tedious, but we now have a vision of how state management should look -- a vision where wolves are restored as an integral component of the ecosystem, are hunted conservatively as a valuable game species, are maintained in areas to be enjoyed by wildlife watchers, and where ranchers can protect their interests and livelihoods. We’re so close to attaining this benchmark moment that it’s foolhardy to become entrenched in legal battles where the state loses sight of these goals and forfeits the opportunity to build trust among those concerned about wolves.

Wyoming has taken positive steps in this direction, away from the futile political bullying of the past. The initiation of a wolf program, led by one of the region’s foremost authorities, shows Wyoming’s readiness for this undertaking. The state Legislature has also created programs ensuring livestock producers are protected financially from wolf impacts. In addition, GYC supported Wyoming’s reasonable pre-injunction wolf hunting seasons in the trophy-game area while suggesting some ways to improve on those regulations.

Though in the case of wolves we typically only hear from outspoken and polarizing individuals, most people in Wyoming are pragmatic enough to see all perspectives on this issue. Working together, this middle-of-the-road segment can help Wyoming develop an acceptable plan.

Instead of continuing to fight, Wyoming ought to get to work and involve all its stakeholders in fixing the problems identified in the court’s decision. This might be our last chance. If we don’t, we’ll continue to be told how to manage wolves by the federal government for the foreseeable future.

If that’s the answer, there’s no question we’ll all be losers ? including the wolf. As an advocate of wildlife, I hope we can produce fresh solutions and not the same tired rhetoric.

Chris Colligan, the new wildlife advocate for the Greater Yellowstone Coalition, is based in Jackson.