Proposed changes to the Mexican wolf reintroduction plan by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service are not sitting well with the Arizona Department of Game and Fish. The state agency issued a notice of intent Jan. 6 to sue the federal agency over the plan, or the lack thereof.
The notice of intent is a required preliminary legal step before an actual suit can be filed. The Fish and Wildlife Service has 60 days to respond to the notice. In short, the state agency accuses the federal agency of pushing forward with the release of wolves throughout most of Arizona without a current science-based plan to guide recovery efforts and control the population.
“Game and Fish has requested an updated recovery plan from the service on multiple occasions over the past several years because the current recovery plan for Mexican wolves developed in 1982 is so outdated that it no longer provides an adequate framework to guide the recovery effort,” an announcement by Game and Fish officials noted.
Game and Fish is calling on the Department of the Interior to work closely with state and local agencies, as well as the government of Mexico, to establish a science-based recovery plan that includes criteria for downlisting and delisting the Mexican wolf as the population recovers.
“This notice of intent is an effort to ensure that the Fish and Wildlife Service adheres to its legal obligation to develop a thorough science-based plan that will lead to a successful recovery outcome that recognizes Mexico as pivotal to achieving recovery of the Mexican wolf given that 90 percent of its historical range is there,” said Arizona Game and Fish Department Director Larry Voyles.
The federal agency is also being sued by a consortium of conservation groups who believe the agency has taken too long to act on behalf of the wolves, and that it has failed to follow a scientifically-based plan. The plan being put forth by the conservation groups, however, has been criticized by Arizona Game and Fish officials as “significantly flawed.”
“This misguided approach could jeopardize genetic integrity of the subspecies if the Mexican wolf is permitted to reestablish in close proximity to Northern gray wolves,” the state agency noted while announcing its own intent to sue.
Fish and Wildlife Services released a final environmental impact study related to the agency’s proposal to release wolves throughout most of Arizona and New Mexico. The study notes that the two states would be divided into three separate management zones, all south of Interstate 40. The requirements include that wolves only be released into the primary recovery zone, which currently includes the southern portion of the Apache National Forest.
Zone 1, which includes portions of Navajo County, would be treated in a similar manner to the existing primary recovery zone, and wolves may be both initially released and relocated to Zone 1 as determined by the Fish and Wildlife Service.
Zone 2, which also includes portions of Navajo County and represents the majority of the eastern half of Arizona south of Interstate 40, would serve as a release zone only for pups who are five months old or younger. Adult wolves may also be relocated to Zone 2. In addition, initial releases of wolves of any age can take place on private or tribal property, if the owner reaches an agreement with state and federal agencies.
Zone 3, which includes most of the western half of Arizona south of Interstate 40, would become an active management area, but no releases would take place there.
Releases will take place in stages over a period of 12 years. The Fish and Wildlife Service noted that initial releases in Zone 1 will be limited to areas east of Highway 87, as well as north of Highway 260 and east of Interstate 17 for the first five years.
The new proposal also modifies the rules that allow killing or taking of wolves. The agency notes that it remains legal to kill a wolf in defense of human life, but the rules are expanded to allow owners of livestock and domestic animals to obtain a permit that enables them to kill “any Mexican wolf in the act of biting, wounding or killing domestic animals on non-federal land where specified in the permit.”
The complete final environmental impact study is available online at http://www.fws.gov/southwest/es/mexicanwolf/NEPA_713.cfm.
Fish and Wildlife Service Southwest Regional Director Benjamin Tuggle noted, “We have received and analyzed more than 40,000 comments on the proposed changes as part of developing the environmental impact statement, as well as consulted with state agencies, tribes and other stakeholders. We believe the preferred alternative strikes the best balance in terms of what is needed to re-establish a genetically diverse wolf population while supporting the interests of other stakeholders on a working landscape.”
