While most of us in the U.S. have been celebrating the holidays, officials in the Bush/Cheney Administration have been working behind the scenes to pave the way for the killing of hundreds of wolves in the Greater Yellowstone area.
Over the last several weeks, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has been quietly moving forward with rule changes that would allow officials in Idaho and Wyoming to begin killing wolves even before gray wolves are removed from the list of federally protected threatened and endangered species.
This latest proposal would allow them to start using airplanes and helicopters to kill hundreds of wolves in Idaho. And it is not just the wolves in Idaho that are threatened but the hundreds of wolves in Wyoming as well. Hundreds of wolves could be shot and trapped under the new rules, whether wolves are removed from the endangered and threatened species list or not. They even have plans to remove the wolves from the Clearwater National Forest in Idaho while they are still on the federally protected status.
A decision on the proposal is expected in the next few weeks. I have not been able to find the Secretary of the Interior, Dirk Kempthorne email address but you can still contact your representatives in both the House and Senate and urge them to speak out against this travesty. Having spoken to them may help also when if, as expected, the Bush/Cheney Administration eliminates Endangered Species Act protections for gray wolves in the Northern Rockies early next year.
As of December 14th, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service officially approved the State of Wyoming’s wolf management plan, allowing state officials to use aerial gunning and snares to shoot and trap as many as two-thirds of the wolves in the state.
Just last week, Congressman Nick Rahall (D-WV), Wayne Gilchrest (R-MD), George Miller (D-CA), Jim Saxton (R-NJ) and Norm Dicks (D-WA) warned in a letter to Secretary Kempthorne that de-listing wolves in the Northern Rockies now is a mistake. In the letter, this bipartisan group of lawmakers cited grave concerns with the state wolf management plans approved by the Bush/Cheney Administration and their potential impact on the future of wolves in the region. Now is the time to speak up. I added links to the above representatives so you can congratulate them for their stance on saving our wildlife. Contact your representatives in the House and Senate. Contact the Whitehouse even. Above all speak out before they destroy our free wolves forever.
Snail Mail:
U.S. Department of the Interior
1849 C Street, NW
Washington, DC 20240
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