State Adamant In Opposing Grizzlies
Idaho Fish and Game Director Steve Mealey on Monday maintained the state’s strident opposition to any reintroduction of grizzly bears in the central Idaho wilderness despite the Forest Service’s apparent attempt at compromise on the issue.
While the government’s preferred alternative for handling the proposed reintroduction seems attractive at first glance, Mealey said it is suspect.
The Forest Service confirmed 10 days ago that it would recommend as its preferred method of handling reintroduction the compromise backed by some conservation groups and the timber industry.
It calls for a citizen committee to make the management decisions about grizzly recovery after the bears are reintroduced in the Sellway-Bitterroot Wilderness.
Mealey said there is a real question whether the Secretary of the Interior can delegate the authority to manage a threatened species to a citizen group, and even if he can, just how far he can go.
Concern over loss of local control once the bears are relocated has always been of major concern, he said, adding that the bottom line on the compromise proposal is whether the citizen committee would actually be able to set the standards for recovery.
“But if in fact their power and opportunities are circumscribed, the case could be made that it’s almost a shill,” Mealey told the Idaho Press Club.
Gov. Phil Batt met with Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt last week but found no common ground on grizzly reintroduction. He quoted Batt as saying it would be at least another year before any decision on reintroduction is made.
And Republican Sen. Dirk Kempthorne of Idaho asked the Senate Appropriations Committee on Monday for $75,000 to scientifically assess grizzly bear populations.
Kempthorne said the study would determine whether existing habitat and conditions would permit the grizzly to survive for another 50 years. A preliminary study in the Yellowstone National Park area found a 92 percent probability that grizzlies would persist for 500 more years.
The senator said it was time to determine if wildlife managers already have “done the job and recovered the bear.”
Regional Forester Hal Salwasser said more public hearings will be held after next month’s release of the preferred alternative. Under it, federal agencies will handle day-to-day activities such as monitoring the bears and removing those straying too close to populated areas, but the Citizen’s Management Committee would set policies, develop yearly work plans and oversee the controversial aspects of grizzly conservation. It would also develop plans that restore grizzly bears but minimize local impact.
Other grizzly reintroduction critics have called it nothing but a public relations gimmick. But Salwasser maintained that since it is highly likely bears will be reintroduced, local citizens would be better off having a say in what happens afterward.
xxxx GRIZZLY PLAN The Forest Service confirmed that it would recommend as its preferred method of handling reintroduction the compromise backed by some conservation groups and the timber industry.