A4
OPINION
Blue Mountain Eagle
Wednesday, February 23, 2022
OUR VIEW
Let the states
manage own
wolf populations
F
or all of the gnashing of teeth and worries about the
impending decline of Idaho’s wolves, any predictions of
their demise are greatly exaggerated.
Last year, the Idaho Legislature modifi ed the law related to
hunting and trapping wolves. Since it’s the state’s job to manage
them, such laws were well within the purview of lawmakers.
Wolf advocates said the legislators were threatening the
state’s 1,500 wolves and any eff orts to reduce that number
would mark the beginning of the end for the predators.
In the year since the law was passed, not much has happened.
The state’s wildlife managers keep tabs on the wolves that have
taken up residence in Idaho. What they found is — drum roll,
please — the wolf population is about the same as before.
The wolf population peaks in the summer, after the pups are
born. After that, any deaths are counted. The Idaho population’s
annual low point is about 900 in the early spring, before the next
batch of pups is born.
State wildlife managers say that if for some reason the pop-
ulation began to decrease too far, they could make mid-course
adjustments.
That’s the sort of thing wildlife managers do.
Montana’s Legislature passed similar legislation. For the vast
majority of the state the new hunting and trapping rules had little
impact on the overall wolf population. However, they found that
some wolves from Yellowstone National Park had a tendency to
drift outside the park and were killed by hunters and trappers.
When wildlife managers saw this, the hunts in that area were
called off . The Yellowstone wolf packs will no doubt rebuild.
There is a concept that continues to be circulated about
wolves: They are timid creatures that need the help of man to
survive in the wild. Environmental groups use that concept to
build a case for protecting wolves, and raising money.
Unfortunately for them, wolves are robust, smart and repro-
duce rapidly. Idaho started with 35 wolves imported from Can-
ada in the mid-1990s. Now the population peaks at 1,500 each
year, even with hunting, trapping and culling wolves that attack
livestock.
Similarly, the wolf populations in Washington state and Ore-
gon are healthy, yet the way they are managed has frustrated
many ranchers.
Idaho and Montana have shouldered the responsibility of
managing wolves in those states. They are held accountable and
able to make changes as needed to maintain the health of the
wolf populations without sacrifi cing the livelihoods of farmers
and ranchers.
Our hope is that, someday, political leaders in the nation’s
capital will allow wildlife managers in the states of Oregon and
Washington to do the same.
The last thing any of those states need is for the federal gov-
ernment to take over all management of wolves. Idaho and
Montana have demonstrated that it’s not needed, or wanted.
WHERE TO WRITE
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@centurylink.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.
• Long Creek — P.O. Box 489, Long Creek
97856. Phone: 541-421-3601. Fax: 541-421-
3075. Email: info@cityofl ongcreek.com.
• Monument — P.O. Box 426, Monument
97864. Phone and fax: 541-934-2025. Email:
cityofmonument@centurytel.net.
• Mt. Vernon — 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:
senecaoregon@gmail.com.
SALEM
• Gov. Kate Brown, D — 254 State Capitol,
Salem 97310. Phone: 503-378-3111. Fax:
503-378-6827. Website: governor.state.or.us/
governor.html.
• Oregon Legislature — State Capitol, Salem,
97310. Phone: 503-986-1180. Website: leg.
state.or.us (includes Oregon Constitution and
Oregon Revised Statutes).
• Oregon Legislative Information —
(For updates on bills, services, capitol or
messages for legislators) — 800-332-2313,
oregonlegislature.gov.
• Sen. Lynn Findley, R-Vale — 900 Court St.
NE, S-301, Salem 97301. Phone: 503-986-
1730. Website: oregonlegislature.gov/fi ndley.
Email: sen.lynnfi ndley@oregonlegislature.
gov.
• Rep. Mark Owens, R-Crane — 900 Court St.
NE, H-475, Salem 97301. Phone: 503-986-1460.
District address: 258 S. Oregon St., Ontario OR
97914. District phone: 541-889-8866. Website:
oregonlegislature.gov/fi ndley. Email: rep.
markowens@oregonlegislature.gov.
FARMER’S FATE
The Ballad of Walter & Momma
alter was a bummer lamb
At the end of the day, his Momma headed off
his fl eece was white as snow,
to shower
and everywhere his Momma went,
and poor Walter thought his heart would break.
the lamb was sure to go.
The bathroom door seemed to be shut for an
He followed his Momma to the barn for
hour;
chores,
Walter bawled and stomped and had started to
where he frolicked with his lambie pals
quake.
Brianna
playing king of the hill, and prancing on all
When his Momma opened up the door
Walker
fours.
Walter pushed past her and laid down on the
It was fun, but he had no plans to stay in those
rug.
corrals.
She hung up her towel, started her shower once more
For Walter never thought himself a sheep;
with him happy at last she could scrub.
instead, he thought his Momma just sheared and tall.
Walter laid at her feet while on the computer she
If she was in reach, he wouldn’t make a peep,
worked;
but step out of the room, and boy would he squall!
Her feet stayed warm and toasty, under the lamb, dog
Walter had nearly died in the cold,
and cat.
it took the night to warm him through.
When Momma’s husband saw them, he shook his
By the time that he was on his legs and bold
head and
his mother had forgotten she’d had two.
smirked.
He trompled through the house by day,
This life was often crazy, but he was proud to hang his
and participated in everything of interest.
hat.
At night he slept in a box of hay;
Why does Walter love his human Momma so?
before the fi replace is where he rested.
her eager children cried.
He helped his Momma with the laundry one day
Because his human Momma saved him from the snow.
and sampled all the socks.
“We all respond to love,” was all she replied.
Then later assisted with a dinner saute
Brianna Walker occasionally writes about the Farm-
and tasted every piece of onion dropped.
er’s Fate for the Blue Mountain Eagle.
W
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
City leaders ignore
bridge safety issue
To the Editor:
I have brought this to the atten-
tion of the mayor and the city man-
ager. With no response from either
of them. Why?
The Third Avenue bridge and
road has a sign that states No Trucks
and has a 30,000-pound weight
limit. Yet the city offi cials allow
overweight trucks to cross that
bridge on a daily basis with blatant
disregard for the safety of the citi-
zens of John Day.
The infrastructure of that bridge
cannot carry an 80,000-pound load,
let alone a 100,000-pound-plus load.
The concern is that the city man-
ager refuses to address this issue
with the citizens of Grant County. I
have sent him several emails which
he refuses to answer.
What kind of city offi cials do we
have here? Public concern should be
the No. 1 priority.
Jon Meiling
John Day
Is the White House
full of commies?
To the Editor:
Have the gods gone crazy or is
the White House full of commies?
What else could explain all these
issues we have – all at the same
time?
To a layman like myself it
appears that the United States of
America is in one hell of a hurry to
surrender to the New World Power
with zero resistance.
It seems like a lot of these prob-
lems we face are intentional. Put
them all together at the same time
and the country can’t handle them,
not to mention the current admin-
istration doesn’t seem to be able or
willing to even handle one at a time.
As long as we allow these people
to run the nation, the closer we all
are to living in the same commune
and fi ghting over the same bread
crumb.
Signed: One Concerned
American.
Eddy L. Negus
John Day
State should share
wolf attack records
To the Editor:
The recent possible attack on
livestock by wolves in the Izee area
has, justifi ably or otherwise, con-
fi rmed the suspicions of many Grant
County producers that they are
unlikely to receive equitable treat-
ment when government decides
predator depredations on livestock.
Those decisions determine whether
the property owner is entitled to the
minimal compensation available and
whether action can be taken against
repeat-off ending predators.
The Grant County Farm Bureau
was among the fi rst to receive the
news of the reported attack, and we
are diligently conducting our own
inquiry into the protocols used to
investigate and determine livestock
predations.
ODFW has requested that we
ask for detailed information on their
investigation through Oregon’s pub-
lic records law; we assert that every
investigation report should be auto-
matically fi led with the respective
county Wolf Depredation Advisory
Committee and made readily avail-
able to all landowners. Regardless,
L
ETTERS POLICY: Letters to the Editor is a forum for Blue Mountain Eagle readers to express themselves on local, state, national or world issues.
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questions. We must limit all contributors to one letter per person per month. Deadline is 5 p.m. Friday. Send letters to editor@bmeagle.com, or Blue
Mountain Eagle, 195 N. Canyon Blvd., John Day, OR 97845; or fax to 541-575-1244.
Blue Mountain
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MEMBER OREGON NEWSPAPER PUBLISHERS ASSOCIATION
ODFW’s published summary of the
Izee incident raises serious ques-
tions with what appears to be sig-
nifi cant diff erences between coun-
ties as to who participates in these
inquests, such as independent par-
ties like local veterinarians and
county sheriff s, as well as possi-
ble defi ciencies in the state’s evi-
dentiary standards — the Izee case
summary contains no record that
the eyewitnesses to the wolves
seen feeding on the cow were ever
interviewed.
Until we are able to review the
complete case report, we recom-
mend that all Grant County land-
owners remain extra vigilant
against what is sure to be additional
destruction of your private property
and be fully aware of what your
rights and responsibilities are when
wolves enter your private lands and
attack your livestock. We also ask
that you seriously consider who is
allowed to enter your property and
for what purpose.
Grant County landowners and
grazing permittees own and man-
age much of the critical habitats
vital for both the wolves’ survival
and the big game upon which they
depend, at little to no risk or cost
to the state or wolf advocates. Our
high-quality stewardship deserves
and demands that deference be
given to the private landowner
when there is any purported uncer-
tainty in mortality determinations
— regardless of predator species.
Anything less than that, or any
deviation from objectivity and fair-
ness in these investigations, will all
but guarantee the end of voluntary
landowner cooperation … with all
state wildlife programs.
Shaun W. Robertson, President
Grant County Farm Bureau
Phone: 541-575-0710
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