Zinke Opens Alaska Wildlife Refuges to Extreme and Cruel Hunting Measures

Anchorage, AK-- Yesterday, Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke announced that the agency will carry out a Congressional rollback of a rule that bans aggressive predator control tactics in national preserves in Alaska, including shooting bear cubs and wolf pups in their dens. The decision will affect over 20 million acres of federal lands and allow dangerous baiting of precious species like the Alaskan blackbear.

In response, Alli Harvey, Alaska Representative with Sierra Club’s Our Wild America campaign issued the following statement.

“Targeting cubs and mothers through baiting and other extreme hunting measures has no place on our public lands. Zinke is undermining science-based wildlife management and the basic premise of public lands as places for wildlife conservation. This decision overrides fundamental national environmental safeguards in the name of narrow interests.

“Across the country, wildlife refuges and other public lands support an amazing array of wildlife, recreation opportunities and outdoor economies. Allowing extreme and unsafe hunting practices in these places directly works against the very purpose they serve.

“Zinke clearly sees no value in the concept of ‘refuges’-- targeting the Arctic Refuge and now wildlife havens everywhere with these unpopular and dangerous political moves. We will continue to stand against Zinke’s targeting of our public lands, wildlife and communities.”