National Parks
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Secretary of Interior Ryan Zinke has directed the National Park Service to reverse Obama-era directives implemented in October of 2015 that prohibited certain “hunting” practices in Alaskan national park units. Zinke is attempting to reinstate the killing of black bears with cubs and hunting them with dogs, hunting grizzlies over bait like donuts and bacon,…
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What would you think if you bought a house and after paying for the property, the current owners refused to vacate the property? Worse, yet, the previous owners continued to run their business utilizing your property for their private profit, while degrading the property’s value? Would you not be outraged? That is exactly what…
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My title may seem excessively harsh by some groups who are doing what they believe is the best way to protect public lands from industrial development. However, when you consider that we have only 2.7% of the lower 48 states in designated wilderness, while at the same time there are calls from many ecologists to…
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By Erik Molvar The newly-signed settlement between environmentalists, ranchers, and the National Park Service puts Point Reyes on the path to resolving conflicts between private livestock and public wildlife on the National Seashore. It requires a forthcoming planning process, during which the public can hold the Park Service to its obligation to manage these lands…
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By Erik Molvar Rocky Mountain elk are one of the stars of the show at Yellowstone National Park, a world-famous destination for wildlife viewing. Elk are a defining species for the natural and human communities surrounding Yellowstone and Grand Teton national parks. Summer tourism is the primary engine of local economies, and the prospect of…
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Many rural counties with sizeable amounts of federal lands within their jurisdictional boundaries depend on federal payments to support basic services like fire, police, schools, and the like. The main programs include the Payments In Lieu of Taxes (PILT), Refuge Revenue Sharing, Secure Rural Schools and Community Self Determination Act (SRS). One of the…
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In response to a guest editorial I published in the Missoulian on the shameful slaughter of Yellowstone’s bison, a group of three retired USDA range managers wrote a commentary that was published in the Missoulian on December 30th on Yellowstone’s bison. They argue that bison numbers must be reduced, and thus implicitly supporting the Dept.…
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Bears Ears in SE Utah and Gold Butte near Mesquite, Nevada declared to be national monuments Gold Butte National Monument is near where Cliven Bundy ran his illegal cattle. I’ve been there. It is scenic and historical, and has obviously been abused by local troublemakers and general lack of recreational management. I see it is…
