Board of Livestock Mtg on Bison EA, New IBMP EIS and Brucellosis

[katqanna]

Here is the link to the page on the Jan. 13, 2013 Board of Livestock meeting in Helena, involving the Brucellosis testing in other states of MT DSA cattle, the New IBMP EIS and the Montana Bison EA. I gave time markers for various points of reference, as well as a basic outline, refuting quotes and documents. The Board voted Alternative A - No Action.

I still need to edit the audio for the portion of the meeting that took place after this segment, which involves the FWP elk brucellosis collaring program. Marty stated they wanted to capture this years 100 elk, test for seropositive, collar in the Tobacco Root Mtns. He believes there is brucellosis in the elk there, which would extend the DSA to the northwest.


DOL Executive Officer, Christian MacKay elaborating on the DOL perspective, that they want the Yellowstone National Park to state a population number for bison and manage for that number, which is estimated around 4700 currently. YNP wild bison population number and keeping it at that low number that the DOL wants, became the theme for the rest of the discussion culminating with Christian MacKays statement, near the Board of Livestock vote, "I see this as a potential to start getting at some of that conflict, start getting - We want this from you (repeated statements of low bison population numbers), you want this from us (expanded bison habitat in Montana - BUT this is something that 78% of polled Montanans have stated they wanted on Montana public lands- not an objective of the YNP committing some sort of National Park sprawl and talking over Montana). When you get to what we want, we can offer what we have." So basically, the Montana livestock industry that represents the 5% of ag/livestock population of Montana and the 7% of the population they hire, for a total of about 12% of the Montana population working in ag/livestock, are holding wild bison on Montana public lands hostage, until the Yellowstone National Park depopulates the wild bison herd to low numbers and maintains it that way. These bison are already at risk of genetic loss due to repeated slaughters.

 

[BBwheelgunner]

This whole deal frustrates me every time I read about it...

 

[thecrittergitter]

Thanks again Kat for your deep involvement. I use your research a lot to keep up on the issues. There is no way I could go to the meetings, I would absolutely punch someone in the face.........

So frustrating....

 

[katqanna]

Thanks Critter, the meetings are sometimes beyond frustrating, but I try to calm myself by getting the facts. Then I can get that info and the science to the public, so more of us can do something about it. That, and I down copious amounts of organic Ecuadorian Kallari dark chocolate. For women, that has a chemically calming effect.

"Our government, National and State, must be freed from the sinister influence or control of special interests. Exactly as the special interests of cotton and slavery threatened our political integrity before the Civil War, so now the great special business interests too often control and corrupt the men and methods of government for their own profit. We must drive the special interests out of politics."
~ Theodore Roosevelt

 

[bigskyblueman]

Kat, Thanks for your hard work and letting the various rogues galleries around the state know that someone is keeping tabs on their misdeeds that affect the hunting community. I look forward to your bulletins and accounts on all of them.

 

[Big Foot]

Thanks Katqanna! I appreciate your updates on these issues.

 

[katqanna]

Thank you and most importantly, thank y'all for those of you who help spread the word, make calls, write letters and emails, etc. It is that kind of mobilization of the facts and science that make a change to protect our wildlife for wildlife management. Like the good news today that the DOL test, slaughter and vaccination of the bison this winter has been called off.