Wolves Versus Livelihoods

Wolves Versus Livelihoods

I’m Lacy Gray with Washington Ag Today.

A series of meetings being conducted by the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife to address wolf management have been attended by hundreds of northeast Washington ranchers who are concerned that the rights of wolves are being put above their rights to protect their livelihoods. A great number of these ranchers have referenced the fact that the wolf population in the state is rapidly increasing. Jack Field, rancher and Executive Vice President of the Washington Cattlemen’s Association, addresses these concerns in association with delisting the gray wolf.

FIELD: The frustration that the folks in northeast Washington have is very rightly found because the way it looks right now they’re going to end up with seven breeding pair when everybody else will only have a minimum of four breeding pair prior to delisting. And again, we have to maintain those breeding pairs successfully for three continuous years in order to delist.

Field reflects on the concerns of ranchers that they will be financially ruined in trying to meet state wolf management requirements.

FIELD: Folks are very interested in trying to figure out what they can do to mitigate and prevent if at all possible, certainly understanding that it isn’t a question of if, it’s just when, lethal deterrents will be required, and we just want to be sure that as an industry we have access to both tools, but to be sure that the expense that is associated with that non-lethal effort is addressed and compensated.

Field reports that there continues to be growing support among cattlemen around the state to enter into landowner agreements for wolf management and that they can contact him with any questions they may have through the WCA office.

I’m Lacy Gray and that’s Washington Ag Today on the Ag Information Network.