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“Public Meeting Update: In light of the recent transition and the need for this Administration to review the recent grizzly bear proposed rule, the Service is cancelling all four of the public meetings and hearings that the agency voluntarily scheduled on this proposal.” USFWS
Not that the cancellation of these meetings is a surprise but I do believe it’s a step in the right direction of delisting Lower-48 grizzly bears and returning management to the States. As is the case any time a presidential administration changes hands, there will be lots of moving and shaking leading to changes that may only last four years. If they happen at all.
Delisting of Lower-48 grizzly bears needs to happen; for the bears, for the people living in grizzly country and for the integrity of the Endangered Species Act. However, I fear an executive order won’t be enough as any decision handed down will be challenged in the courts.
Do I think that changes are necessary and inbound? Yes. Do I think it will be a simple and straightforward process? No.
The landscape of modern wildlife management is a convoluted and intricate chess match between diametrically opposed stakeholders. That said, I see the cancellation of these meetings as a step in the right direction toward science-based conservation and away from emotionally driven preservation.
