Federal agencies are again considering reintroducing grizzly bears to the North Cascades of Washington, where the animals once thrived.
The National Park Service (NPS) and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) announced the initiation of a new environmental impact statement (EIS) to explore options for restoring grizzly bears to the North Cascades Ecosystem (NCE).
“This is a first step toward bringing balance back to the ecosystem and restoring a piece of the Pacific Northwest’s natural and cultural heritage,” said Superintendent Don Striker of North Cascades National Park. “With the public’s help we will evaluate a list of options to determine the best path forward.”
The new EIS process will consider two alternatives: the no-action alternative of following existing management practices or the proposed action of designating grizzly bears in the U.S. portion of the NCE and surrounding areas as an experimental population under section 10(j) of the Endangered Species Act (ESA).
“By designating bears in the area as a 10(j) experimental population, the agencies can have more flexible options available for management. This would give authorities, ranchers, and landowners more options for managing bears to reduce or avoid conflicts while focusing on recovery,” said Hugh Morrison, acting regional director for USFWS’ Pacific region. “The 10(j) experimental population designation would benefit the people and property in local communities, as well as the grizzly bears.”
Under the proposed action, NPS and USFWS would capture bears from either interior British Columbia or the Northern Continental Divide Ecosystem. Approximately three to seven captured grizzly bears would be released into the NCE each year over roughly five to 10 years, with a goal of establishing an initial population of 25 grizzly bears.
After the initial population of 25 grizzly bears has been reached, an adaptive management phase would allow additional bears to be released into the ecosystem over time to address population issues. Within 60-100 years, the agencies anticipate having a population of approximately 200 grizzly bears.
Grizzly bears are “functionally extirpated” from the NCE. The agencies state that restoration is needed for the ecosystem’s biodiversity and to support the recovery of the species so it can be delisted under the ESA. The grizzly bear was listed as threatened under the ESA in 1975.
Environmental groups said the NCE is one of two bear recovery zones without an established population of bears and would not likely be repopulated by natural bear migration due to its isolation from other recovery zones.
The most recent confirmed observation of a grizzly bear in the U.S. portion of the NCE was in 1996. One grizzly bear has been confirmed during the past five years in the British Columbia portion of the Cascades, within 20 miles of the U.S. portion.
Background
In 1991, during their winter meeting, the Interagency Grizzly Bear Committee identified 9,800 square miles of the NCE as an adequate habitat for grizzly bears.
Following a completed recovery plan for the bear population in British Columbia in 2004, USFWS and NPS announced in 2014 they were drafting an EIS for grizzly restoration in the NCE.
In mid-2017, Department of the Interior officials halted progress on the recovery efforts and provided no explanation for the decision. In 2018, then-Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke told a small group at the administrative headquarters of North Cascades National Park that the grizzly bear recovery plan would move forward. Zinke said he was confident an EIS and record of decision regarding the reintroduction could be delivered by the end of the year, and he said he was “confident we can reintroduce the grizzly bear back to this ecosystem.”
The announcement drew the dismay of Ethan Lane, then-executive director of federal lands for the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, who said the decision “won’t just impact ranchers—it’s a blow for the entire North Cascades ecosystem, the safety of locals and visitors, and the local economy, too. In fact, the only beneficiaries of an action like this will be the radical environmental activists that support this type of ill-advised ecosystem tinkering.”
In October 2019, NPS announced it was holding a public meeting on the draft EIS evaluating the effects of alternatives for grizzly bear restoration. NPS also stated that comments previously received on the draft EIS during the public comment period in 2017 would be considered. According to NPS, the effort to restore the grizzlies was discontinued in 2020.
Reaction
Environmental groups applauded the restarting of the process for reintroducing grizzly bears.
“The grizzly bear is a critical part of the ecological and cultural fabric of the North Cascades. They belong here. Without them our wild areas are diminished, less diverse and sanitized. The narrative about Cascades grizzly bear recovery will take decades to unfold. But with science, education and a little human tolerance, it can be one of the greatest conservation success stories of ours and future generations,” said Joe Scott, international programs director for Conservation Northwest, in a statement.
Scott Schuyler, policy representative for natural and cultural resources for the Upper Skagit Indian Tribe, said in a statement the grizzly has a cultural significance for the Tribe, and the restoration of the bear “will enrich our ancestral lands and help restore the foundations of our cultural practices.”
Rep. Dan Newhouse (R-WA-04), whose district covers the central third of the state and encompasses the NCE, said the reintroduction would negatively impact the communities he represents.
“My constituents and I have consistently opposed proposals to do so under multiple administrations because introducing an apex predator to the area would threaten the families, wildlife, and livestock of North Central Washington,” Newhouse said. “It is disappointing that local voices are once again being ignored by federal bureaucrats, even after the last process was discontinued due to overwhelming local opposition.”
Comments for the project will be accepted until Dec. 14 at parkplanning.nps.gov/projectHome.cfm?projectId=112008 under the “open for comment” tab. — Charles Wallace, WLJ editor
