A proposal to remove grizzly bears living in the area around Glacier National Park from endangered species protections could come out as early as next year, according to U.S. Fish Wildlife and Service officials testifying today before state lawmakers.
Wildlife managers say the population of bears living in the Northern Continental Divide Ecosystem has grown to over a thousand bears and could now meet the requirements for delisting.
Hilary Cooley is a bear recovery coordinator for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. “Since listing in 1975, that population has doubled in its distribution,” Cooley said.
Cooley, along with Montana wildlife officials, testified Thursday before state lawmakers and others on the Montana Environmental Quality Council.
Livestock owners told the council that more needs to be done to protect ranchers’ properties as grizzlies expand into new territory.
Representatives from wildlife advocacy groups rose in opposition to a resolution passed by lawmakers last session urging the delisting of all grizzly bears in Montana, and returning their management to state control.
However, during the EQC hearing, Hilary Cooley told state lawmakers that’s not how the delisting process works.
“We cannot delist or list populations along state lines, because it’s not based on science. That would be political,” she said.
This summer, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service delisted grizzlies living in the Yellowstone ecosystem.
Half a dozen lawsuits are challenging that delisting, claiming grizzlies are not ready to be removed from federal protections and face legal hunting seasons.
If a delisting proposal is announced for grizzlies living the Northern Continental Divide Ecosystem, it would take roughly a year for federal officials to finalize that proposal.
