It is growing increasingly obvious the major threat to grizzly bears is lack of habitat. As the quality of their food sources declines, the same amount of country will support fewer bears. As a result they range more widely and get into trouble as Western development continues to expand into their habitat.
Well there’s not much that can be done about that, right?
Wrong. There’s central Idaho, a huge grizzlyless expanse full of good habitat and not many people. Plans were to begin to restore them them to the area in the early 1990s. Then came governor Dirk Kempthorne, a man of almost no outdoor experience. He protested so loudly about the danger they posed, almost as if they would attack his home in Boise that the plans to restore them were shelved. Now he is Secretary of Interior, but this awful regime will only last one more year, then maybe things can get back on track.
With grizzlies occasionally migrating to the area, Louisa Willcox writes that there is hope yet.
Louisa Willcox: Hope of recovery of grizzly bears is not lost
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Ralph Maughan
Dr. Ralph Maughan is professor emeritus of political science at Idaho State University with specialties in natural resource politics, public opinion, interest groups, political parties, voting and elections. Aside from academic publications, he is author or co-author of three hiking/backpacking guides, and he is past President of the Western Watersheds Project.
Lets not stop at Central Idaho, lets get some grizzlies in Southwest Idaho too.
Let’s let a few wander over to Washington State too.
And Oregon too. That will give the wolf haters over there more to complain about…..sorry i know this is off topic.