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A4 Opinion Blue Mountain Eagle Wednesday, November 18, 2015 Oregon wolf decision based on facts, not fears W olves are thriving across the West. In Montana, Idaho, Washington and Oregon they are becoming a ¿[ture on the landscape. A wolf pack has even turned up in Northern California. In that conte[t, the Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commission made a solid decision last week to take wolves off the state’s endangered species list. Four breeding pairs have been in Eastern Oregon for three consecutive years, as is required in the state wolf plan. Actually, the number of breeding pairs is nine, signaling that the population is far healthier than the wolf plan requires. Add that to the fact that a minimum of 82 wolves are known to live in Eastern and Southwestern Oregon and there is little reason to worry about wolves disappearing. Their numbers have increased from 14 in 2009 to 82 this year. And remember: Those are minimum numbers that wildlife managers have con¿rmed. The actual population may be far larger. The criteria for delisting the wolf in Oregon were in the state’s wolf management plan, which was the product of prolonged and public debate when it was written. Now that wolves have met those criteria for delisting, some folks are looking for loopholes to back out of the plan. They are way out of line. First, wolves in the western two-thirds of the state remain protected just as they have been all along. Only in the eastern one- third of the state, where all but seven of the wolves live, are they affected at all, by allowing wildlife managers more Àe[ibility. Second, Oregon ranchers, who have been most affected by the return of wolves, have lived up to their part of the deal. They’ve done it in the face of a predator that as of the ¿rst of the year had killed 114 cattle, sheep and herding dogs and injured many more. That is only the number of killings that wildlife managers con¿rmed. /ast year, for e[ample, 34 depredation investigations resulted in only 11 con¿rmed wolf kills. Though ranchers are indemni¿ed for their livestock, it doesn’t repay them for the weight their other cattle lost because of wolves or the e[tra hours and effort required to protect against wolf attacks. Third, the Endangered Species Act was aimed at protecting plants and animals that were in danger of e[tinction. Wolves do not ¿t in that category. They are robust predators that follow the food and do not need special treatment. In fact, wolves were never reintroduced in Oregon or Washington state; they spilled over from Idaho and British Columbia, where the estimated wolf population is 10,000. More than 50,000 wolves live in Canada and 30,000 live in Alaska, It de¿es logic to argue that the wolf is on the brink of e[tinction. Yet earnest groups of activists insist that, somehow, wolves are getting short shrift in Oregon. Some are saying the state’s biologists didn’t jump through an adequate number of hoops before recommending that wolves be delisted. They say they might sue. If they do, we’ll know their concern isn’t for wolves, which are continuing to thrive and multiply despite all of the fearful predictions activists have made over the years. L ETTERS TO THE E DITOR Thanks for the veterans ceremony To the Editor: On Monday, Nov. 9, Grant Union students and faculty honored coun- ty veterans. The sincere ceremony, from the Pledge of Allegiance, stu- dents singing “The Star-Spangled Banner” and “God Bless America” to the background of a beautiful large American Àag that unrolled from the ceiling of the gym, was im- pressive and appreciated. The event was completed with the students and teachers passing in line to shake our hands and present each vet with hand-written notes of appreciation for our military ser- vice. From an old WWII and Korean War veteran, I want to say “Thanks” to those who made the event possi- ble, and realize freedom isn’t free. Joseph E. Schmitz John Day Commissioners need a spokesperson To the Editor: The three county commissioners each speak their own opinion. That’s friction. With that attitude, the coun- ty is always a loser. They need a secretary or spokes- person who makes a statement to the press, the three of them represented as a whole, undivided public elected unity. W. Toop Canyon City W HERE TO W RITE GRANT COUNTY Grant County Courthouse — 201 S. Humbolt St., Suite 280, Canyon City 97820. Phone: 541-575-0059. Fax: 541- 575-2248. Canyon City — P.O. Box 276, Canyon City 97820. Phone: 541-575-0509. Fax: 541-575-0515. Email: tocc1862@centu- rylink.net. Dayville — P.O. Box 321, Dayville 97825. Phone: 541-987-2188. Fax: 541- 987-2187. Email:dville@ortelco.net John Day — 450 E. Main St, John Day, 97845. Phone: 541-575-0028. Fax: 541- 575-1721. Email: cityjd@centurytel.net. Blue Mountain EAGLE P UBLISHED EVERY W EDNESDAY BY /ong CreeN — P.O. Box 489, Long Creek 97856. Phone: 541-421-3601. Fax: 541-421-3075. Email: info@cityoÀong- creek.com. Monument — P.O. Box 426, Monu- ment 97864. Phone and fax: 541-934- 2025. Email: monument@oregontrail.net. Mt 9ernon — P.O. Box 647, Mt. Vernon 97865. Phone: 541-932-4688. Fax: 541-932-4222. Email: cmtv@ortelco.net. Prairie City — P.O. Box 370, Prairie City 97869. Phone: 541-820-3605. Fax: 820-3566. Email: pchall@ortelco.net. Seneca — P.O. Box 208, Seneca 97873. Phone and fax: 541-542-2161. Email: cityseneca@centurytel.net. Wolf supporters use delisting as a means of fundraising By Doug Whitsett For the Blue Mountain Eagle Some of the ¿rst governance meetings held in Oregon were con- vened in 1843, due to concerns over wolves killing livestock. It required more than 100 years of concerted effort before the last Oregon wolf was presented for bounty in 1946. Due entirely to their ill-advised re- introduction, the same issue is be- ing actively debated today, more than 10 years after the ¿rst control efforts began. /ast week, the Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commission voted 4-2 to delist the Canadian gray wolf from the state’s endangered species list. The commission’s decision came following an entire day of testimo- ny. People from throughout the state attended the meeting, including wolf advocates primarily from Port- land and Eugene. Their perspective was countered by representatives of the Oregon Hunters Association, the Oregon Cattlemen’s Association and many other residents of Eastern Oregon. Recent commission ap- pointee Jason Atkinson was once again absent from the proceedings. The commission heard presenta- tions from the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife’s wolf program coordinator, as well as one of the program’s original architects, a bi- ologist who has since retired. The presentations included maps of the areas in which wolves are known to e[ist in Oregon. It clearly showed that the ape[ predators are found nowhere near Portland or Eugene, but largely in the northeastern part of the state. The commission then began hearing arguments representing both sides of the issue including oral testimony from my of¿ce. We testi¿ed that according to recent press accounts, constituent oper- ators of a century ranch located in northern Klamath County awoke on three consecutive mornings to ¿nd that wolves had maimed or killed their cattle. Also placed into the record by my of¿ce was written testimony provided by representa- tives of Oregon Wild and the Sierra Club during a meeting of the House Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee last April. That committee had considered a bill that would have authorized the /egislature to be in charge of the wolf delisting decision. At that time, environmentalists testi¿ed they believed the /egislature did not have the e[pertise to make a delisting decision and that the Fish and Wildlife Commission was the only body capable of making such a determination: “Managing our state’s wildlife is the role and responsibility of the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, and decisions regarding listing or delisting species are en- trusted to the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, and decisions regarding listing or delisting spe- cies are entrusted to the Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commission. These entities have the necessary Grant County’s Weekly Newspaper P UBLISHER ............................... M ARISSA W ILLIAMS , MARISSA @ BMEAGLE . COM E DITOR .................................... EDITOR @ BMEAGLE . COM A DMINISTRATIVE A SSISTANT ........ K RISTINA K REGER , KRISTINA @ BMEAGLE . COM E DITORIAL A SSISTANT ................ C HERYL H OEFLER , CHERYL @ BMEAGLE . COM C OMMUNITY N EWS .................... A NGEL C ARPENTER , ANGEL @ BMEAGLE . COM S PORTS ................................... A NGEL C ARPENTER , ANGEL @ BMEAGLE . COM M ARKETING R EP ....................... K IM K ELL , ADS @ BMEAGLE . COM O FFICE M ANAGER ..................... L INDSAY B ULLOCK , OFFICE @ BMEAGLE . COM MEMBER OREGON NEWSPAPER PUBLISHERS ASSOCIATION scienti¿c, policy and legal e[per- tise to make these decisions, and the processes to ensure full compliance with the law and Sen. Doug opportunities for public participa- Whitsett tion.” Now that the commission has made its decision, we believe it is important for them to hear and understand that quote. It would be much more dif¿cult for environ- mentalists to successfully overturn a delisting made by the /egislative Assembly than a delisting made by the commission. We understand that environ- mental organizations are unhappy with the commission’s decision and believe they are likely to sue the commission, even though they nuanced their delisting decision by suggesting that the /egisla- ture should limit the delisting to Eastern Oregon and signi¿cantly enhance the penalty for killing a wolf. Under current Oregon law, that penalty is a 6,250 ¿ne and up to one year in jail. Much of the testimony provided by environmentalists at the hearing appeared to be based on emotion rather than reality. A frequent argu- ment was that the delisting would open the door for the wholesale slaughter of wolves. This is simply not true. Although a giant step forward for protection of some livestock, the state delisting does not allow the killing of any wolf in the area designated as Western Oregon, lethal action may only be taken against wolves in the area des- ignated as Eastern Oregon, and then only when they are literally “caught in the act” of killing or maiming livestock. The commission action will provide little help to reduce wolf depredation in Klamath County because, absurdly, Western Ore- gon is now de¿ned to include most of Central and Southwestern Or- egon. Therefore, only non-lethal means are being deployed to dis- courage the lone wolf that killed and maimed the Klamath County calves. The Oregon Endangered Spe- cies Act requires conservation that brings a species to the point where measures are no longer necessary. It requires the commission to base the delisting on scienti¿c criteria related to the species’ biological status in Oregon and mandates the use of documented and veri¿able scienti¿c information. Oregon’s current wolf plan was developed in 2009, and was a col- laborative effort directly involving all of the stakeholders, including environmental groups. It was ap- proved unanimously in the Senate and had broad bipartisan support in the House. Under the plan, it was agreed that the delisting could be considered once the wolf population reached a speci¿c threshold. That threshold was reached nearly a year ago. 1 YEAR SUBSCRIPTION RATES (including online access) Grant County .....................................$40 Everywhere else in U.S. .....................$51 Outside Continental U.S. ....................$60 Subscriptions must be paid prior to delivery Periodicals Postage Paid at John 'a\ and additional Pailing oIÀces POSTMASTER send address changes to: Blue Mountain Eagle 195 N. Canyon Blvd. John Day, OR 97845-1187 USPS 226-340 wwwMyEagleNewscoP Ranchers and other people in Eastern Oregon upheld their part of the bargain. They endured the last several years abiding by the terms of the wolf plan, with the under- standing that delisting would occur once the wolf population reached the milestone established under the agreement. /ast April, ODFW issued a draft evaluation recommending delisting of the wolf. ODFW staff made the recommendation to delist the wolf last month based on their best sci- ence and reiterated the recommen- dation during the hearing. They based their recommenda- tion on the fact that Oregon wolves are not in danger of e[tinction, and that e[isting programs and regu- lations are adequate to protect the species and its habitat. In short, the plan was created, agreed upon, and the criteria for delisting has now been e[ceeded. The Oregon wolf plan does not allow for hunting or other unau- thorized killing of wolves. It only allows for taking of wolves as a management tool, in response to depredation. Nonetheless, environ- mentalist organizations attempted to use their typical tactics to pur- sue their agenda. Their rhetoric is reminiscent of the disastrous 1994 Northwest Forest Management Plan, when stakeholders came to an e[tensive agreement that was almost immediately derailed by environmental groups failing to act in good faith. The lengthy trail of lawsuits and devastated rural com- munities is now the true legacy of those efforts. For wolf advocates, the delisting represents a major setback in their concerted, coordinated and contin- ued efforts to eliminate the grazing of cattle and sheep on public lands. The most signi¿cant change result- ing from the delisting is that envi- ronmentalists would no longer be able to use the Oregon ESA to ¿le frivolous lawsuits under the guise of protecting the wolves. Within hours of the commis- sion’s decision, the Center for Biological Diversity was already using the delisting for fundrais- ing purposes. They are promising to take the ODFW to court with- in days to overturn the delisting. Apparently, they now believe the ODFW e[pert scientists are inca- pable making a decision based on sound science. /ast week’s delisting decision ultimately represents a hard- fought victory for rural Orego- nians who have lived under the constant threat posed by these dan- gerous and destructive predators. Hopefully, common sense will con- tinue to prevail, and the organized wolf advocates will no longer be able to use the wolves to advance their agenda to deliberately destroy the livelihoods of people outside the Willamette Valley. Please remember — if we do not stand up for rural Oregon, no one will. Sen. Doug Whitsett represents District 28 in the Oregon Legisla- ture. Copyright © 2015 Blue Mountain Eagle All rights reserved. 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