Statement on Secretary of the Interior’s Rejection of Selway-Bitterroot Grizzly Plan

Statement of Rodger Schlickeisen, President of Defenders of Wildlife

(06/21/2001) - It is with tremendous regret, but little surprise, that we find Secretary of the Interior Gale Norton has broken two more of the promises she made at her confirmation hearings. Late Wednesday, Ms. Norton proposed to rescind plans to reintroduce threatened grizzly bears to wilderness areas in central Idaho. By her action, she is throwing away more than six years of good-faith negotiations and collaboration between the conservation, timber and labor communities in Idaho and Montana and killing the best – and possibly last – chance to involve citizens and local communities in grizzly recovery in the lower 48 states. We believe Ms. Norton’s actions are not just regrettable, but illegal. Defenders of Wildlife is carefully considering its options to pursue this case.

The plan Ms. Norton rejected went through extensive public review and comment. Throughout this process, all participants worked hard to address the needs of grizzly bears and citizens in the region. The grizzly plan was subject to public meetings and congressionally-mandated scientific studies. The plan passed all the tests and eventually won support from the general public and elected state officials like former Montana governor Marc Racicot, whom President Bush apparently considered for the job Ms. Norton now holds.

The fact is, the Bitterroot is the last, best place for recovering grizzly bears in the lower 48 states. If we do not seize this opportunity, the future of the grizzly is indeed uncertain. The Bitterrroot ecosystem contains excellent habitat and 4 million acres of designated wilderness. There is very little potential for conflict there with humans or livestock. Ms. Norton and other politicians have been paying endless lip service to local control and collaborative approaches, and now they have such an innovative proposal; instead of seizing this unique opportunity, they shoot it down.

Once again, Ms. Norton has broken her patently insincere promise at her confirmation hearing to implement the Endangered Species Act, which clearly charges her to bring the bear back. Even worse, it’s hard to imagine a better example of collaboration between local communities, industry and environmentalists on endangered species, and her action shows the hollowness of her words about supporting endangered species recovery when there is real local involvement in these important decisions. Her warm, fuzzy rhetoric about grizzly bears in the Yellowstone and Northern Continental Divide Ecosystems in reality amounts to a firm commitment to do absolutely nothing.

It’s ironic that, on the same day Ms. Norton announced this decision, even Terry Anderson – the free-market economist and western property-rights advocate from Bush’s transition team who championed her appointment – was praising the Selway-Bitterroot grizzly plan in Washington, DC. Dr. Anderson devoted special attention to the grizzly plan because of its innovative, collaborative approach and consideration of local concerns.

Unfortunately for Ms. Norton, the law requires that citizens will have 60 days to tell her what they think of her autocratic rejection of this innovative, locally-led plan to return the grizzly to wilderness areas in Idaho. We expect the American people will overwhelmingly support this collaborative approach that creatively and effectively meets the needs of local communities, people, and grizzly bears.

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Defenders of Wildlife is a leading nonprofit conservation organization recognized as one of the nation's most progressive advocates for wildlife and its habitat. With more than 430,000 members and supporters, Defenders of Wildlife is an effective leader on environmental issues.

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Contact(s):

Cat Lazaroff, (202) 772-3270