Elk Public Comments Due Sept. 8

[katqanna]

Please dont forget that the Elk Management in Areas with Brucellosis, 2015 Proposed Work Plan are due by Sept. 8th at 5 PM.

This one is trickier as they have broadened the scope to year round and have expanded it outside the DSA. And here is the biggie, they are trying to roll the APHIS capture and collar surveillance program into this elk management program. This 5 year program currently is due to sunset in 2015, which APHIS pays 80% of. If they roll it into this elk brucellosis management program it will go on indefinitely, which is the APHIS DoL objective.

Of course there is also all the regular BS that has accumulated with each work plan.
Here are my comments I sent to them, focusing on the APHIS program with the Cooperative Agreement, which states APHIS and DOL objectives of eradication of brucellosis in our wildlife - under Agency Collaboration.

“The United States Department of Agriculture, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, Veterinary Services (USDA, APHIS, VS), in cooperation with the State of Montana (State) through the Montana Department of Livestock, knowing the necessity to prevent further introduction of brucellosis into the cattle herds of Montana and to control and eliminate brucellosis from wildlife in Montana and the Greater Yellowstone Area (GYA), do hereby submit this plan to develop and implement brucellosis herd action plans for cattle, elk herd unit management plans, perform functions and duties of Montana relative to the Greater Yellowstone Interagency Brucellosis Committee (GYIBC) and planning efforts, and conduct brucellosis prevention, surveillance, control and eradication activities in Montana and the GYA.”

This is the real mover and driver of this thing and how our FWP got hijacked.