Article Summary –
Environmental organizations have filed lawsuits against the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) over the decision to not restore federal protections for Northern Rockies wolves. The groups claim that the USFWS based its decision on flawed population models and underestimated the impact of wolf-reduction measures in Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming. As part of their lawsuit, the organizations are asking the court to nullify the USFWS’ decision and produce a new analysis considering the impact of human-caused mortality on the wolf species.
US Wildlife Service Sued Over Failure to Protect Northern Rockies Wolves
Two lawsuits hit the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) on Monday, contesting the agency’s refusal to reestablish federal safeguards for Northern Rockies wolves. The plaintiffs demand a reassessment of the February decision, with a stronger focus on human-caused mortality’s impact on the canid species.
The lawsuits, filed in federal court, claim that USFWS’s decision was based on faulty population models and significantly underestimated the effect of aggressive wolf reduction efforts in Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming. The agency had previously argued that its decision was founded on “the best available data,” maintaining that wolves are not at risk of extinction “now or in the foreseeable future.”
Several environmental groups, including Western Watersheds Project, WildEarth Guardians, Alliance for the Wild Rockies, Trap Free Montana, and Wilderness Watch, challenge this assessment, arguing that it overlooks clear threats to the species and relies heavily on flawed population models.
The lawsuit focuses on laws passed by lawmakers in Montana, Idaho, and Wyoming in recent years, claiming that these rules, along with estimates from a model favored by Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks (the Integrated Patch Occupancy Model or iPOM), are biased and result in population estimation errors due to territory size and pack number underestimations.
Western Watersheds and other co-plaintiffs request the court to invalidate USFWS’s decision, citing it as “arbitrary” and “not in accordance with the ESA,” and demand a fresh analysis.
In contrast, a separate lawsuit filed by the Center for Biological Diversity and other groups alleges the federal government’s conclusion was based on unfounded assumptions and failure to consider the best available science.
Greg Lemon, a representative from Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks, said the agency has not reviewed the lawsuits yet. He added that their focus is on managing wolves in Montana and that a final decision on its draft wolf management plan is expected in the coming months.
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