Wolves predating on livestock grazing on public land continues to be an issue.  We all recall the tragic story of government authorities wiping out the Profanity Pack in Washington State where cattle were permitted to graze on public land near a known wolf den with pups. I have a proposed solution that may not be perfect but is better than the way things are now.  All leases between the federal government and livestock owners allowing grazing on public land where natural predators may be present should contain a provision whereby the livestock owner waives any claim for losses due to predation, and expressly stipulates that in return for this use of public land the livestock owner assumes all risks to the livestock as a result of the public land grazing.  If the livestock owners do not like this provision, then they do not need to request the opportunity to have their livestock use and graze on public land and can graze their animals on private land which is what they should do anyway. 

The ultimate fairness of this proposal is clear when one realizes that the public owns these lands and the native predators have every right to live there and make a natural use of the land, which is interrupted by the introduction an artificial food source that does not belong there and that they are then punished for using. In this regard, it is important to remember that the domestic livestock being inserted there is in furtherance of the private ranching industry’s profit making operations, who then seek the destruction of the native residents that cannot resist the temptation to use for food that which is artificially dangled in front of them on their home turf, instead of accepting that this is a cost to their business arising from the way they choose to conduct it by using public land.

Also, it appears that the federal government, long the protector of endangered species, is about to reverse and destroy the forward looking red wolf recovery project in North Carolina by imposing restrictions that are bound to result in the red wolf’s extinction in the wild. This project has been the product of extensive scientific research and wonderfully progressive legislation in the form of the federal Endangered Species Act. Moreover, large amounts of public money have been expended to further the project and attempt to insure its success. Now, all of this will have been wasted if the new regulations doom the project to failure. Considering all the many ways in which federal funds are these days literally and uselessly thrown away in misguided efforts allegedly to give help where none is really needed or deserved, it would seem that preserving the existence of a unique American animal is a meritorious use of public money that should be encouraged, not eliminated. Public comments can be made on this matter up to July 30, 2018 by going to regulations.gov and then Docket ID FWS-R4-ES-2018-0035 and click on Comment Now.

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