Page 10A
OFF PAGE ONE
East Oregonian
Friday, April 13, 2018
WOLVES: Report shows livestock depredations decreased in 2017
Continued from 1A
Most wolves in Oregon
remain clustered around the
northeast corner of the state,
though several packs and
known wolf territory can also
be found in Wasco, Klamath
and Lake counties. Statewide,
Oregon now has 12 wolf
packs, 11 of which were
successful breeding pairs,
meaning that at least two
adults and two pups survived
to the end of the year.
Wolf reproduction was
the highest recorded in 2017
since the species returned
to Oregon, with pups being
born in 18 groups — a 50
percent increase over 2016.
Though they did not meet the
definition of a breeding pair,
reproduction was confirmed
in the Chesnimnus, Harl
Butte, Meacham, North
Emily and Shamrock packs,
as well as the OR-30 and
OR-52 pairs.
Gov. Kate Brown said
she is encouraged by the
continued
recovery
of
Oregon wolves, though
ongoing conflicts with
poachers and livestock
remain troublesome.
“Despite this good news,
ongoing issues of poaching
and livestock depredation
must be carefully considered
as we explore more effective
management and conserva-
tion practices,” Brown said.
Though ODFW removed
wolves from the state
endangered species list
in 2015, it remains illegal
to shoot a wolf except in
limited circumstances, such
as in defense of human life
or those caught in the act of
chasing livestock. Wolves
Known Oregon wolf packs (As of Dec. 2017)
Confirmed pack/individual range
Estimated pack/individual range
NOTE: Polygons represent estimated
ranges for known wolf packs with
radio-collared animals.
Portland
97
101
197
5
1
Salem
22
9 10
11 14 15
84
Pendleton
16
7
395
6
12
3
17
5
18
13
OREGON
2
19
82
4 8
26
84
26
20
126
20
97
58
5
21
101
N
22
25 miles
199
Medford
5
*At least one breeding pair
Pack/area
Total
1. White River
2
2. Desolation
2
3. OR30
3
4. Meacham*
3
5. OR52
3
6. Mt. Emily*
5
7. Ruckel Ridge 7
8. N. Emily
2
9. Walla Walla* 7
10. Wenaha*
10
11. Noregaard* 9
12. Minam*
11
Source: Oregon Dept. of Fish and Wildlife
remain federally protected
west of highways 395, 78
and 95.
ODFW reported four
cases of wolves killed ille-
gally in 2017. Three cases
are still under investigation.
The fourth, in Union County,
involved a wildlife trapper
who shot a wolf he found
in one of his traps. David
Sanders Jr., 58, pleaded
guilty to one count of using
unbranded traps, and was
sentenced to 24 months
bench probation, 100 hours
of community service and a
$7,500 fine.
The
Union
County
20
26
395
Wolf pack population
Bend
Eugene
John Day
(cont.)
Total
13. Catherine*
4
14. Shamrock
3
15. Chesnimnus* 3
16. Snake River* 10
17. Harl Butte*
4
18. Middle Fork* 6
19. Pine Creek* 8
20. OR37
1
21. Silver Lake 1
22. Rogue*
7
Lone/misc.
13
Minimum total 124
Alan Kenaga/Capital Press
District Attorney’s Office
agreed to dismiss one count
of illegally shooting a special
status
game
mammal,
though Sanders did have his
hunting and trapping license
suspended for 36 months and
agreed to pay an additional
$1,000 penalty to ODFW.
In all, 13 wolf deaths
were recorded in 2017 —
12 of which were caused
by humans. ODFW issued
lethal take permits that
resulted in four wolves being
shot from the Harl Butte
pack in Wallowa County,
and one from the Meacham
pack in Umatilla County,
to try and curb livestock
depredations. Lethal take is
allowed under Phase III of
the Wolf Management and
Conservation Plan in Eastern
Oregon.
Meanwhile,
OR-48
from the Shamrock pack
was unintentionally killed
by an M-44 cyanide trap
that had been set by USDA
Wildlife Services on private
land; a pup from the Ruckel
Ridge pack was killed by a
livestock protection dog;
and OR-30 was shot by an
elk hunter in Union County
who claimed he was acting
in self-defense. The hunter,
38-year-old Brian Scott, was
not charged with a crime.
Sean Stevens, executive
director of the Port-
land-based environmental
group Oregon Wild, was
sharply critical of poachers
and ODFW killing wolves.
Most recently, the agency
approved killing two more
animals from the Pine Creek
pack in Baker County for
preying on cattle.
“The wolf population is
stagnant because poachers
and ODFW agents are killing
more wolves — this despite
the fact that ODFW admits
livestock
depredations
are down from last year,”
Stevens said. “It demands
accountability from an
agency that insists on killing
more wolves every year.”
The annual wolf report
shows confirmed livestock
depredations decreased from
24 in 2016 to 17 in 2017.
Those cases involved 11
calves, one llama, one alpaca
and 23 domestic fowl.
Quinn Read, Northwest
director for the group
Defenders of Wildlife, said
the evidence shows Orego-
nians can co-exist with
wolves.
“ODFW
should
be
looking at how to support
these successes, rather than
encouraging reckless lethal
removal protocols,” Read
said.
Ranchers, however, say
they will need more support
from the state to ensure they
can protect their businesses
and their livelihood.
George
Rollins,
a
Baker County rancher and
co-chairman of the wolf
committee for the Oregon
Cattlemen’s
Association,
said the latest depredations
by the Pine Creek pack
resulted in three dead calves,
four wounded and another
three missing.
“The people taking the
economic loss and the
emotional stresses are the
producers,” Rollins said.
“It gets very tiresome.
They feel like they’re not
being supported. Nobody’s
listening to them.”
As the population of
wolves
increases
and
continues to move west,
Rollins predicts there will
be more wolf-livestock
conflicts in the future. He
said ODFW needs to give
more control to local author-
ities to handle so-called
“chronic depredators.”
OCA is also seeking to
tie state funding for compen-
sating ranchers directly to
the rising wolf population,
Rollins said, to make sure
they can afford non-lethal
tools such as hiring range
riders to haze wolves.
One such bill was
proposed during the 2017
short legislative session by
Rep. Greg Barreto (R-Cove),
but died in committee.
“If we want to manage the
wolf, we need to make sure
we can fund it properly,”
Rollins said.
ODFW is still working
to pass an overdue five-year
update of its wolf manage-
ment and conservation
plan. The Fish and Wildlife
Commission decided in
January to do more stake-
holder outreach and try to
reach a greater consensus.
No date for adoption has
been scheduled.
RACES: Next forum Thursday
at Pendleton High School
Continued from 1A
Givens led off with
economic development as
the county’s most pressing
concern and water as the
development driver. He
said that means working
with state water agencies
for water rights. Shafer,
however, said mental health
and drug addiction are the
biggest problems. He said
Lifeways, which provides
local mental health services,
needs to make good on old
promises of providing nine
workers in the county.
Bailor said public health
has to be the top issue and
suggested the county needs a
behavioral health committee
to find “home grown
solutions.” Murdock added
housing to the mix and said
the county is working with
the city of Hermiston on a
project to add hundreds of
homes. And Pullen said the
county needs to hire a full-
time economic development
director.
That left an opening for
Murdock, who on a subse-
quent answer pointed out
the county did what Pullen
requested back in February,
when former Pendleton
Chamber of Commerce
director Gail Nelson took
the post as the county’s new
economic development and
tourism coordinator.
Pullen admitted that was
news to him.
Several candidates said
the county should be a
companion in economic
development and partner
with cities and organi-
zations. Givens said the
county needs to continue
using property tax breaks to
bring in businesses. Bailor
said he sees the county as
a “facilitator for economic
development” and ques-
tioned if the county was
getting a good deal from
those business incentives.
Murdock and Shafer
touted how the jail has
boosted the inmate popula-
tion from about 135 per day
to more than 200. But Shafer
said that means inmates
are sleeping in recreation
rooms, and a chunk of
the inmate population has
mental health problems.
Pullen said mental health
has long been a concern
and the number of people
with mental illness is rising.
He said he wants more
mental health services in
schools. Bailor said county
leadership should have seen
the mental health crisis
coming sooner and been
more aggressive in pursuing
state money to address those
needs in the jail. The county
needs to develop better
mental health services, he
said.
Murdock said the state
cut funding for mental
health and has yet to bridge
that gap. He advocated for a
mental health grant program
akin to the state’s Justice
Reinvestment
Program,
which funds local programs
to keep offenders out of
prisons.
He also touted county
successes, including the
resurrection of the drug
treatment court, which
closed last year due to a lack
of state funding.
Givens said the county is
one of the fastest growing in
Oregon, and growth brings
some pains. Even so, he
said, the county is in a good
financial position. Pullen
asserted the county board of
commissioners’ first move
in a budget crisis is to fire
personnel, but that should
be the last resort. The board
in 2017 cut 10 positions to
fix a $1.7 million shortfall,
a move he called poor
management.
Murdock stated every
employee with the county
from the 2017-18 fiscal year
will remain in the upcoming
fiscal year.
The condition of county
roads was also discussed.
Givens said road department
funds come from the state
gas tax, which is declining
in revenue, and not the
county’s general fund. The
county prioritizes which
roads to maintain or repair
to stretch those dollars, he
said.
Shafer argued main-
taining roads on a rotational
basis, while Bailor said
the county should entice
companies to take on road
work.
Murdock said Umatilla
County has more miles of
roads than any other county
in the state, and with a bond
a no-go, the county sets
aside money to keep facili-
ties in good condition.
Pullen
suggested
a
program of three years of
regular road maintenance,
then dedicating the next year
to tackling out-of-the-way
roads.
The county commis-
sioner candidates led off
the forum, and candidates
for Hermiston City Council
played the second act. For a
full video of the forum, visit
altv.us.
The
commissioner
candidates get another go at
voters — and maybe each
other — at the Pendleton
Chamber of Commerce
candidate forum Thursday
at Pendleton High School.
Staff photo by E.J. Harris
Umatilla County Commissioner George Murdock answers a question about the
county budget during a candidate forum on Wednesday at Armand Larive Middle
School in Hermiston. Murdock is running against Tom Bailor and Rick Pullen.
DRAWINGS FOR PRIZES
FUN FOR THE WHOLE FAMILY
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REGISTER ONLINE BY APRIL 28TH TO ORDER
A CUSTOM TECHNICAL RACE T-SHIRT
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