Eastern Washington residents earn right to protect against wolf attacks

 

April 26, 2013

OLYMPIA… After months of negotiations and legislative public hearings about how to address threats posed by gray wolves in northeast and north central Washington, the state Fish and Wildlife Commission today adopted an emergency rule that allows people to lethally remove a gray wolf without a permit in order to protect their property, pets and livestock.

The change to the state’s wolf-conservation and -management plan was spurred by a letter sent to the commission earlier this week, which asked for consideration of the proposed rule. The letter was signed by 10 state legislators, including Sen. John Smith and Reps. Shelly Short and Joel Kretz – the 7th District delegation that has worked tirelessly for months on wolf-related bills that became the subject of heated debates throughout the course of this legislative session.

“This is a good first step to move the conversation forward, said Short, R-Addy. “I want folks back home to know that not only did we hear them, we never gave up trying to find a solution so that our constituents can have the peace-of-mind protection they need to protect their families, pets and livelihoods.”

The provision is only for federally delisted portions of Washington. Other stipulations include: any wolf kill must be reported to the state Fish and Wildlife Department within 24 hours; the wolf carcass must be surrendered to the department; and the owner must grant or assist the department in gaining access to the property for the purpose of investigating the incident.

“This came down to a matter of preserving the health, safety and welfare of our residents,” said Kretz, R-Wauconda. “I don’t anticipate this change will have a negative effect on the recovery of wolves, but it was absolutely necessary, especially as grazing season begins and because we know that non-lethal methods do not always work.”

The Fish and Wildlife Commission has the authority, granted by the Legislature, to adopt emergency rules when necessary to preserve public health, safety, and general welfare.

Cattlemen put WDFW on notice

March 22, 2013

Legal letter highlights regulatory failures

The Stevens County Cattlemen’s Association(SCCA) has sent a letter to the Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife(WDFW) highlighting what SCCA calls a “disturbing trend” of the Department not following their own regulations.

The letter, sent March 15 through a Colville-based lawyer, notes that the wolf situation in Eastern Washington and public records requests from SCCA show “a disconcerting pattern of (the Department) having regulations on the books, but the Department and the Commission failing to follow them.”

Among its concerns, SCCA’s letter notes that the Gray Wolf was listed as an Endangered Species in Washington State law in 1980 without any biological evidence. However, in recent requests by local governments and organizations, petitions to delist the wolf have been denied based on a lack of biological evidence.

“It is a terrible irony that neither the Department nor the Commission can produce any evidence for initially listing the Gray Wolf or continuing to list it as an Endangered Species, but demand that the burden of biological evidence be met by the public in order to delist,” the SCCA letter states.

In addition, SCCA highlights that the Department has limited data related to the Gray Wolf and a lack of data affirms the assumption that the wolf is being “socially managed.”

Wolf management has also become a “spontaneous affair” and deviates from the state Wolf Conservation and Management plan that took several years and a public review to complete by creating management methods not in the plan.  For instance, Management Contracts that livestock producers must sign in order to receive assistance from WDFW and the hiring of two “conflict management specialists” are not listed as options in the Wolf Conservation and Management plan and are some of the more recent reactionary management strategies.

“If management strategies are going to be a spontaneous affair, then the Wolf Conservation and Management plan is either a document that is so unhelpful to render it useless or it is so flawed that it must be revised,” SCCA asserts in their correspondence.

In light of these shortcomings, SCCA is asking for the Commission to delist the wolf as an endangered species; that the Department commits more time and resources to data collection and to revisit the Wolf Conservation and Management plan.

SCCA President Scott Nielsen said the letter is aimed at creating a better relationship between the public and the Department by ensuring that when regulations are passed or plans are created, they are followed.

“We know that the Department has a huge confidence problem in our area and we want them to better understand why that is. If they want to build a relationship with the community in order to better manage their wildlife, they must recognize that trust and follow-though is a huge part of that,” said Nielsen. “You can’t say one thing and do something else.”

A response from the Department to the letter is required by March 22 in order to avoid “further legal action.”

 

Wolf bills in the house will die due to inside deal

We are just as disappointed as Rep. Kretz that the wolf bills in the house will fail, likely due to a deal that the Washington Cattlemen’s Association lobbyist Jack Fields made with the Humane Society.
As a note, SCCA is an independent cattlemen’s organization and is not affiliated with the Washington Cattlemen’s Association.
Listen to this Capitol Report from Kretz to hear what happened:

CapitolReport-Kretz-022713

WDFW wolf meetings this week–please attend and provide feedback!

The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife plans to have three wolf meetings in Eastern Washington this week. We encourage you to attend one near you and provide feedback on their presentation. Below are the details from the WDFW press release:

The meetings, which will run from 6 to 8 p.m., are scheduled as follows:

• Feb. 26 in Cusick at the Cusick Community Center, 107 1st Ave.
• Feb. 27 in Colville at the Colville Ag Trade Center, 317 West Astor Ave.
• Feb. 28 in Okanogan at the Okanogan Public Utilities District office meeting room, 1331 2nd Ave. N.

With calving season now under way, the meetings will give livestock owners a chance to talk directly with WDFW wildlife managers about wolves and their impacts on ranching operations, said Stephanie Simek, WDFW wildlife-conflict manager.

“We plan to discuss the various types of landowner assistance that we have available and the specific needs of individual producers,” Simek said. “Producers will have time to ask questions and offer comments.”

The meetings will also include a brief presentation on the current status of wolf packs in Washington.

Simek said the department has funding available to support cost-sharing agreements for preventative measures that can help minimize problems with wolves. Those practices include reducing attractants by disposing of livestock carcasses, installing special fencing, using protected areas for calving and lambing, and using range riders to haze wolves away from livestock.

Sixteen livestock producers have signed cooperative cost-share agreements to date, Simek said.

WDFW also provides direct technical assistance to ranchers, pays compensation for confirmed livestock losses – and under certain conditions – issues permits to kill predatory animals.

The gray wolf is currently listed and protected as state endangered throughout Washington and federally endangered in the western two-thirds of the state.

 

 

75th anniversary banquet draws over 350 attendees

SCCA had their biggest-ever banquet turnout last Saturday with over 350 people coming through the door. The prime-rib meal, catered by Maverick’s Restaurant in Colville, was excellent and people took home some great items via our raffles from Super One ($200 gift certificate), Big R (rifle), a “cowgirl basket” that included wine and a .380 handgun, and a dinner for 2 at TJ’s restaurant. In addition, there was a card game where the winners took home a chainsaw, a metal sculpture and a pistol.
Ryan Hansen, of Republic, was the lucky winner of our 75th anniversary commemorative saddle. (Pretty nice saddle for the $20 ticket!)
But the evening would not have been possible without all the awesome support and help from the community. Many of the Eastern Washington county commissioners were present, including some of our 7th district legislators and Sheriff Kendle Allen. The serving of dinners and bussing of tables was done by the Colville and Kettle Falls FFA kids, along with youth from the beef and swine barns at the Northeast Washington Fair.
Thank you for attending our banquet! We hope you had a great time!

SCCA to raffle new saddle at banquet, Feb. 9

 

 

 

 

 

The Stevens County Cattlemen’s Association will be holding their annual banquet and social night on Sat, Feb. 9 at the Community College in Colville, located at 985 S. Elm.

The event will commemorate the 75th anniversary of the county association and will include dinner, a live and silent auction, raffle and games.  Auction items include the cut and wrap services on a beef, a log truck of firewood, a chainsaw, toys, jewelry, artwork and ½ of a hog that is cut and wrapped.

SCCA is also raffling off a new saddle sponsored by Booth and LaDuke Motors, LaDuke and Fogle Equipment, Colville Tire, Clark’s All Sports, Colville Animal Hospital, Colville and Kettle Falls Aslin-Finch Stores. The saddle features commemorative tooling created by Wyatt Cowley of Wyute Leather. Raffle tickets for the saddle are $20 each and are available at all the saddle sponsor locations. Only 200 saddle raffle tickets will be sold.

Event sponsors include Super one Foods, Hancock Forestry, Tri County Motorized Recreation, Big R, Cornett Custom Meats and Gallo Meats.

Social hour starts at 5 p.m. followed by dinner at 6 p.m. Mavericks Restaurant will be catering the prime rib dinner. Dinner tickets are $25 per person. Dinner tickets are available at Big R and Aslin-Finch stores. For more information, call SCCA President Scott Nielsen at 675-2608.

Rep. Joel Kretz introduces wolf relocation legislation

After Western Washington legislators extolled the value of wolf packs in Eastern Washington, Rep. Joel Kretz decided that he would assist in the efforts to make relocating wolf packs to Western Washington easier through legislation this year. House Bill 1258 would remove barriers, both natural and regulatory, to the relocation of wolves from around the state to Western Washington locations, such as the Olympic Peninsula and San Juan Islands.

“We have a situation where folks on the west side of the state really want to share in the ecological benefits wolves bring to our state, but barriers such as Interstate Five and waterways, like those surrounding the San Juan Islands, inhibit the natural migration of wolves to those areas,” Kretz explained. “My bill would create a system by which community members, including legislators, could request wolves be transported by the state Department of Fish and Wildlife across the natural barriers to thrive in new habitat where they will be welcomed.”

 House Bill 1258 would ensure all Washingtonians share in the benefits of an expanding wolf population, according to the bill’s title.

 “Washington state has a long tradition of land stewardship that makes excellent agriculture regions and habitat for large predators, such as wolves,” Kretz said. “Private landowners are the best and most effective environmentalists. As such, there are areas on the west side of the state that would fit the bill for large predator habitat. We should not geographically limit the migration of wolves to areas where they will be welcomed and there is the habitat that allows them to flourish.”

Kretz added that he and other residents in the 7th District feel greedy for hoarding all the ecological benefits of wolf packs.

“It’s clear our part of the state is home to the lion’s share of these large predators. My bill would help the Department of Fish and Wildlife accelerate the pace of translocating wolves so all Washingtonians can enjoy them,” Kretz said. “This move could generate the eco-tourism west side legislators always cite as part of growing our economy.”

The Wauconda Republican was concerned with the Department of Fish and Wildlife’s decision to host public meetings on wolf management in areas of the state where there aren’t any wolves.

“The department hosted public forums in Spokane Valley, Olympia and Seattle. These places don’t have any wolf packs, which raises one obvious question: Why hold the meeting there?” Kretz asked. “Those meetings should have been held in locations where people have actual experience in dealing with the animals. My constituents are frustrated and I don’t blame them.”

However, if the measure proposed by Kretz is signed into law, meetings in Seattle and other locales on the west side of the state would be necessary.

“My bill, if passed, would truly be a successful collaboration between east and west, urban and rural and rich and poor parts of the state,” said Kretz. “Those residents and communities that support housing wolf packs at all costs are free to do so. Those of us dealing with the economic costs associated with loss of livestock and pets can deem the wolves nuisances and, therefore, make the animals available for relocation where they will be set free to roam unfettered in new habitat.”

Kretz said he expects the legislation will be embraced in a bipartisan manner.

“This truly is a ‘one Washington’ bill,” Kretz said.

 

 

2013 “BALANCE OUR WILDLIFE, SAVE OUR FAWNS” COYOTE DERBY, JAN 1- FEB 28TH

The annual Northeast Washington Coyote Derby is now on and is asking hunters to help reduce the number of coyotes in the area in order to promote the deer population. Prizes will be awarded via a raffle. Each coyote that is brought to a check station will receive a ticket for the raffle.
The Stevens County Cattlemen’s Association is sponsoring the event via a $250 contribution.
Details about check stations and raffle prizes are below:

Check stations: Clark’s All Sports, Colville (7 days a week); Camo’d Arrow, Chewelah (Wed-Sat); Fruitland Service Station, Fruitland (7 days a week); Pend Orielle Sportsmans, Oldtown/Newport (Mon-Sat); Valley Fuel, Valley (7 days a week).

Raffle Prizes and donors:
6×18 Shooters Edge Tactical Scope (Clark’s All Sports); $150 Clark’s All Sports gift certificate (Lake Roosevelt Walleye Club); $150 (Jeff Harshman); Four $25 gas vouchers (Arden One Stop); $75 (Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation); $50 (Pend Orielle Sportsmen); $250 (Stevens County Cattlemen).

For more information about the derby, contact Clark’s All Sports 684-5069.

SCCA 75th anniversary banquet Feb. 9

The Stevens County Cattlemen’s Association will be holding their annual banquet on Sat, Feb. 9 at the Community College in Colville.
The event will commemorate the 75th anniversary of the county association and will include dinner, entertainment and a live auction.
SCCA is also raffling off a new saddle sponsored by Booth and LaDuke Motors/LaDuke and Fogle Equipment, Colville Tire, the Colville and Kettle Falls Aslin Finch Stores, Colville Animal Hospital, Clark’s All Sports and Wyute Saddlery.Raffle tickets for the saddle are $20 each.
Social hour starts at 5 p.m. followed by dinner at 6 p.m. Dinner tickets are $25 per person.For more information, call SCCA President Scott Nielsen at 675-2608.

SCCA calls absence of wolf data “unacceptable”

 

WDFW crafts policy on social pressure alone

The Stevens County Cattlemen’s Association has discovered that the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife has been crafting much of their policy about wolves based simply on social pressure, not on data. This fact, supported by public records requests made by SCCA, shows that WDFW lacks the information and data to properly manage the predator.

“Over the last several months, we have submitted a number of formal requests to WDFW regarding specific data related to the wolf,” said SCCA President Scott Nieslen. “The responses we received show that WDFW has no information on the number of prey animals available for the wolves, they have limited information about the wolf population and have no ability to predict how wolves will affect local communities. This is totally unacceptable.”

Over the last two months, SCCA filed specific Public Records Requests that asked questions like, “What is the current ungulate prey base in Eastern Washington?”, “What is the current predator population?”, “What are the anticipated prey needs for the 8 wolf packs in Eastern Washington?”, and “What are the scientific studies on predator and prey relationships?.”

In response to these questions, WDFW presented some information on cougar populations at a SCCA meeting in December in Colville. However, questions about the wolf and its impacts on the current predator/prey populations or any data related to ungulate populations in the region could not be answered. The WDFW also affirmed their inability to answer the questions in formal public records requests from SCCA.

“We felt it was very important to remove the emotions and politics from the wolf issue and start talking about nuts and bolts,” said Nielsen. “But as we asked those questions about real, tangible data, we have discovered the Department cannot answer these questions.”

The absence of data is disturbing from a department with numerous biologists tasked with monitoring and studying wildlife populations, said Nielsen. More significantly, it shows that the Department plans to continue with its current approach.

“It will be catastrophic for our local communities to have a reactionary response to this issue,” Nielsen noted. “We know that we already have too many wolves in the area and we need to see proactive management of the animal.”

The evidence of wolf saturation in Eastern Washington has already being recognized by nearby communities, as the Colville Confederated Tribe has already approved an open hunting season to remove 9 wolves on the reservation’s 1.4 million acres.

“We don’t have to look any further than our own backyard to see other groups taking proactive actions designed to protect deer and elk populations. We should be doing the same,” said Nielsen.

Treating the wolf as a species that still needs special protections is also denying the data that is available. The recovery of the wolf on a regional level has already been asserted by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service that declared the wolf as “fully recovered” in the Northern Rocky Mountain Region in a status review in 2012.

A 2012 review of the biological status of the wolf, conducted by USFWS Wolf Management and Science Coordinator Mike Jimenez, stated, ”by every biological measure, the NRM Gray Wolf Distinct Population Segment (DPS) is fully recovered.”

SCCA noted the USFWS data in a formal letter on Dec. 9 asking that the wolf be delisted in the Eastern Washington Region. According to state law, WDFW must deny the request or begin the delisting process within 60 days.

For more information, visit www.stevenscountycattlemen.wordpress.com or email: stevenscountycattlemen@gmail.com