The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA), Public Lands Council (PLC), and Washington Cattlemen’s Association (WCA), along with several other national agricultural organizations, are opposing the Biden administration's proposal to reintroduce grizzly bears to the North Cascades Ecosystem (NCE) in Washington state.
“Introducing an apex predator like the grizzly bear to a new area of Washington state is a mistake, and poses a huge threat to our rural communities and hardworking farmers and ranchers,” NCBA President-Elect Mark Eisele, a Wyoming rancher, said. “This plan is being pushed by bureaucrats thousands of miles away from the West who do not fully understand the harm this species will cause to producers. The Biden administration should listen to rural residents and rethink this plan.”
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The groups say efforts should focus on areas such as the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem, where the Fish and Wildlife Service is considering removing the bear from the endangered species list, and not on the NCE, where no grizzlies currently exist.
“Grizzly bears are twenty-times more dangerous than black bears and are well known for their aggressive, fatal maulings,” PLC President Mark Roeber, a Colorado rancher, said. “I have faced livestock depredation from gray wolves around my ranch and introducing an even larger predator will only cause more harm to our fellow livestock producers in Washington state.”
The groups filed comments with the Fish and Wildlife Service on the proposed reintroduction.
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