ICL scolds Otter for bighorn sheep policy. Environmental group calls it a ‘top down approach’. By Matt Christensen
Times-News writer.
The governor’s bighorn sheep policy is supposed by announced Feb. 15.
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Dr. Ralph Maughan is professor emeritus of political science at Idaho State University. He was a Western Watersheds Project Board Member off and on for many years, and was also its President for several years. For a long time he produced Ralph Maughan’s Wolf Report. He was a founder of the Greater Yellowstone Coalition. He and Jackie Johnson Maughan wrote three editions of “Hiking Idaho.” He also wrote “Beyond the Tetons” and “Backpacking Wyoming’s Teton and Washakie Wilderness.” He created and is the administrator of The Wildlife News.
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thanks to ICL for this. i think robison did a good job of explaining the absurd process.
those of us who attended the first and second (most recent) public working group meeting were led to believe by the departments that our contribution of comments and suggestions at win-win solutions in the meetings meant something, they even wrote down in bullets everyone’s suggestions at the meeting !!! 😉 ~ only later, when viewing the 1st draft for the “interim” policy, did it become apparent that the only interests who had their input worked into the document was the domestic-sheep lobby. then, in a conversation following, it was mentioned that the meetings were not intended to gather public input ~ it was just a window into the process… ‘sorry to waste your time folks’ ~~ it wasn’t even a window, there were still private meetings that developed the bulk of the plan nearly every week – and from what i suspect, a governor trying to avoid legislative action and IDFG folk trying keep their jobs about managing for wildlife instead against it.
ultimately, the Otter policy should be scolded for its corrupt process ~ but also for the standard it sets for wildlife management. for its emphasis on slaughtering bighorn, for perpetuating the threat of disease to bighorn on America’s public lands, and for erecting artificial sheep extermination zones that will drive the nail in the coffin re: the recovery (& necessary expansion) of bighorn sheep populations where the few sheepman remain king ~ your public lands. this process was wrong ~ this policy is wrong.