By Graham Taylor, Wildlife Committee Chair
Would you believe me if I said we may recover the North Cascades grizzly bear under the Trump Administration?
When former Secretary of the Interior, Ryan Zinke proclaimed his broad support for grizzly recovery during his visit toSedro Woolley just over a year ago, many conservationists were shocked. Zinke’s announcement led to some big headlines, from the Skagit Valley Herald’s proclamation: “Zinke gives support to grizzly bear restoration plan” to the Seattle Times’ assessment, “Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke throws support behind grizzly bear recovery in North Cascades.”
Yet despite these bold declarations, the administration continued to stall the recovery process. Even after receiving over 126,000 comments, hosting dozens of public meetings, informational sessions, and briefings, the National Park Service and the US Fish and Wildlife Service went quiet. Attempts to find out why the process had halted were met with silence and speculation.
Over the last several months, many bear lovers have been scratching their heads wondering, what’s next for the Great Bear? With Zinke out at Interior, and Dave Bernhardt confirmed as new Secretary, we’ve wondered what Bernhard may have in store for the lost bears of the North Cascades.
However, thanks to Senator Cantwell, we now may have the answer. When given the chance to query nominee Bernhardt on grizzly bears, Senator Cantwell asked for a status update on the grizzly bear recovery process. Bernhardt made a hard and fast commitment, responding that the National Park Service and Fish and Wildlife Service will move forward with the public process, scheduling additional public meetings. When asked about his opinion on grizzly recovery, he said, “we all benefit from the conservation of the grizzly bear [and] any effort to introduce bears must fully address the impacts to people and communities from such efforts, including public safety.”
With the promise of grizzly bear recovery on the horizon, we must work harder than ever to get past the finish line. Make your voice heard by calling your elected officials. As the late local conservation hero Helen Engle said: “We must all go together to accomplish our work. We must all speak up for the world we want for our kids and grandkids.”
Please take a moment to thank Senator Cantwell for advocating on behalf of our grizzlies. If you’d like to get involved further, look for more public meetings in the coming months to speak up for the lost grizzlies of the North Cascades. You can become a friend of the grizzly and sign up with our coalition to receive more campaign updates or email me at Gtaylor206@yahoo.com.
Thank you for all that you do on behalf of our wildlife and public lands.