AUG 04, 2011 "In The Crosshairs"
SPECIAL WOLF
UPDATE
Aug 04, 2011
Northern
Rocky Mountain Delisting Statute Upheld
Judge Molloy of the Montana District Court has issued yet another
colorful and significant opinion. On August 3rd, he
ruled that Congress’ legislative fix to the delisting of the NRM
wolves is Constitutional. This means that for now, the wolves
of the NRM area remain delisted, except those in Wyoming.
Montana and Idaho continue to have management authority over wolves
within their borders, and scheduled hunts can proceed. Judge
Molloy indicated in his ruling that he believes that the law
violates separation of powers principles but upheld the law based on
Ninth Circuit precedent. That precedent forced him to rule
against his own position on the Constitutionality of the wolf law.
In many ways, Judge Molloy’s ruling looks like an invitation to the
Plaintiffs to appeal to the Ninth Circuit – imploring them to test
out whether the appellate court actually wants their precedent to be
interpreted as the judge concluded he was forced to do. SCI’s
role in the case is complicated. Our motion to intervene in
the District Court was denied and we appealed that denial to the
Ninth Circuit. If the Plaintiffs do decide to appeal Judge
Molloy’s ruling on constitutionality, our appeal of his decision on
our intervention may preserve our opportunity to defend the
constitutional of the wolf law at the appellate level.
Court Denies Challenge to NRM Experimental Population
Rule
This case has been the sort of “red-headed step child” of wolf
litigation. The relevancy of this litigation has waxed and
waned depending on whether the NRM wolves were on or off the
endangered species list – a status that has changed multiple times
since the FWS promulgated the Experimental Population rule in 2008.
The rule at issue in this litigation gave the FWS authority to grant
permission to states to lethally remove wolves having an
unacceptable impact on wild ungulate populations. After
Congress passed their legislative fix for NRM wolf delisting, the
rule became a non-issue for all wolves except a very small
population on the Wind River Reservation in Wyoming.
Yesterday, the Court dismissed the challenge to the Experimental
Population Rule based for a variety of reasons (mootness, ripeness,
standing, etc.). SCI was participating as a Defendant-Intervenor
in this case. Although the Court did not attribute his ruling
to SCI’s briefing, some of the arguments upon which he ruled were
ones that SCI pursued in our briefing. It is unlikely that the
Plaintiffs will appeal this ruling.
Wyoming and FWS Reach
Agreement on Wyoming Wolf Management Plan
At long last, the FWS is satisfied that Wyoming has developed a
wolf management plan that qualifies as an “adequate regulatory
mechanism” – a necessary component for the delisting of Wyoming’s
wolves. In this plan, Wyoming agrees to manage for a
population of at least 10 breeding pairs and at least 100 wolves
outside of Yellowstone National Park. Wyoming’s Trophy Game
Management Area’s boundaries will be flexible. In the areas
outside the WTGMA, wolves will be designated as predators. The WTGMA
boundaries will expand during the period from October 15th
through February 28th or 29th in order to
protect dispersers during peak wolf dispersal periods. The
plan allows for a limited amount of aerial gunning for wolves by the
Wyoming Department of Game and Fish in order to control livestock
depredations, to achieve ungulate management objectives if wolves
are determined to be a significant cause for not meeting those
objectives, or to address human safety issues. For more information,
please see the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Wyoming fact sheet
detailing the agreement here:
http://on.doi.gov/n4y1bX
Idaho Sets Wolf Hunting Seasons
The Idaho Fish and Game Commission adopted a 10-month-long wolf
hunting season in the upper Clearwater River Basin of the state.
Hunters will be allowed to kill two wolves per year. “Department
Director Virgil Moore has said the state will manage the hunt to
ensure the wolf population stays well above 150 -- the number that
could trigger relisting the animals under the Endangered Species
Act. There are believed to be about 1,000 wolves in Idaho.”
(Source: The Standard-Examiner)
http://bit.ly/nKGHsy