WWPBlog

George Wuerthner reminds us that local opposition to protecting wild places is historically the norm. Localized support ?… Usually after the fact.

A Grand Plan to Protect the Northern Rockies
Saving the Big Wild
By George Wuerthner

What do the Grand Teton National Park, Yellowstone National Park, Glacier National Park, Grand Canyon National Park, and Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument all have in common? Besides their common designation as national parks and monuments, all these conservation areas were initially opposed by local people.

The Times-News weighs in on the restoration efforts of the Murphy Complex fire.

BLM hopes to prevent the incursion of cheatgrass across the charred landscape by reseeding with natives but appointed state legislator and livestock rancher Bert Brackett thinks he knows better:

“In a perfect world, native (plants) would be great,” the Three Creek-area rancher said. “But natives can’t compete with cheatgrass.”

Brackett quibbles with the feds’ decision to reseed the high desert with a mix consisting of 80 percent native plants.

Brackett has been raising a lot of hell about the fire and rehabilitation efforts. In the past, rehab out in Jarbidge (site of Murphy Complex) had ushered the introduction of non-native species, species like Crested Wheat grass that are more productive as livestock forage than their native counterparts. This management, made with livestock production on public land as its Modus operandi, failed to prevent the incursion of cheat. Unfortunately, the non-native landscape alterations such as Bert Brackett prescribes are basically worthless for wildlife as well.

But Bert continues to speak as if wildlife in Jarbidge does not (or should not) exist and as if his ties to disgraced Idaho Sen. Larry Craig still afford him the political leverage to turn yet another huge swath of otherwise critical sage grouse habitat into an agricultural wasteland.

Western Watersheds Project Acts To Protect The
Imperiled Montana Grayling In Montana And The Big Lost River Whitefish In Idaho

WWP Online Messenger # 132

Montana Grayling Photo © Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks

Western Watersheds Project has joined with the Center for Biological Diversity, the Federation of Fly Fishers, Pat Munday of Butte and former Montana fishing guide and WWP Advisory Board Member George Wuerthner in filing litigation against the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) for their denial of listing of the remnant population of Montana fluvial grayling. That denial appears to have been the result of interference by the disgraced Bush Department of the Interior official, Julie MacDonald, who has now resigned.

An excellent article about the plight of the Grayling in Montana by famed outdoor writer Ted Williams is to be found in the November/December issue of Fly Rod & Reel and can be downloaded at this webpage.

Separately, WWP has filed a new 60 day Notice of Intent To Sue the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for its decision not to carry out a status review of the Big Lost River white fish as petitioned by WWP in June 2006. In October 2007 the USFWS denied WWP’s listing petition for the Big Lost River White Fish because in their judgment it does not qualify as a distinct population segment of the species even though it exists only in one isolated sinks river (the Big Lost River in central Idaho) that has been isolated from any other watershed for at least 10,000 years !

In the case of both of these beautiful fish, livestock production that dewaters and degrades the stream and river habitat for these fish is the primary reason for the huge decline in numbers and occupied habitat of both of these imperiled species.

WWP is ably represented in both these cases by Attorney Judi Brawer of Boise, Idaho. Thank you Judi !

Big Lost River White Fish Photo © Idaho Department of Fish and Game

Here Are Two Articles About The Grayling Lawsuit:

Grayling ESA Suit Filed

By SCOTT McMILLION
Friday, November 16, 2007

Grayling Decision Draws Suit

By Justin Post
Friday, November 16, 2007

Western Watersheds Project Is A Regional Conservation Organization Working To Protect And Restore Western Watersheds And Wildlife
http://www.westernwatersheds.org
Consider joining Western Watersheds Project yourself or enrolling a friend with a gift membership. Joining is
easy at WWP’s secure online membership page
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WWP’s Online Messenger #131

Copyright: USDA Forest Service

Western Watersheds Project and our co-plaintiff, the Hells Canyon Preservation Council have won another important victory protecting Rocky Mountain Bighorn Sheep from a fatal disease transmitted by domestic sheep.

Sign-Up for WWP’s Online Messenger

Join Western Watersheds Project to receive a print copy of WWP’s Watersheds Messenger periodically and help us restore Western watersheds and wildlife.

Watersheds Messenger - Fall ‘07 (pdf) :

More Than Just A Beautiful Bird
by Jon Marvel

A Foul Wind Blowing
by Jonathan Ratner

Read the rest of this entry »

The Helena Independent Record reports on US District Judge Lodge’s decision to allow the Safari Club to participate in litigation concerning grizzly bears being dropped from Endangered Species Act protection.

Hunting group intervenes in lawsuit over grizzly bear protection

Safari Club officials said they want to prevent the grizzly bear from regaining protection under the Endangered Species Act. They said federal protection for the bear “deprives the states of their management authority,” blocks states from preventing declines in deer, elk and moose populations and would prevent sustainable bear hunting in the future.

Inadequate consideration for the health of grizzlies’ future food supply given die-off of white pine (grizzly bears eat the nuts) and global warming are among the major issues involved in the of seven conservation groups, including Western Watersheds Project, decision to litigate the rushed delisting.