Ruling Ends Alaska's Wolf Control Program
By MARY PEMBERTON, Associated Press Writer Tue Jan 17, 10:50 PM ET
ANCHORAGE, Alaska - Alaska's wolf control program, under which hundreds of the animals have been killed, is illegal because the state did not follow its own rules in establishing it, a judge ruled Tuesday.
The program was meant to boost moose and caribou populations in areas where residents say wolves are killing so many that few have been left for food. In some areas, wolves were shot by armed teams in planes.
The program has been suspended as a result of the judge's decision, said Matt Robus, director of the state Division of Wildlife Conservation. People with permits to kill wolves in the five areas of the state where the program was under way were being notified, he said.
An attorney is still analyzing the ruling to see what action the state should take, he said.
Friends of Animals, a group based in Connecticut, had sued to end the program. The ruling "tremendously gratified" its president, Priscilla Feral.
The Alaska Board of Game did not provide the required justification for the program, including previous measures that did not work, Superior Court Judge Sharon Gleason said. The board also did not explain why alternative ways to reduce the wolf population would not work.
And the board did not explain how it set wolf reduction targets in the different areas, she said.
The plaintiff's lawyer, James Reeves, said the law requires that the state "have data and present the data and establish the facts that are required in those regulations. They can't just make stuff up."
The program began in 2003. Under it, more than 400 wolves have been killed. The state had set a goal of another 400 this winter. The state issued more than 100 new permits last month.
Alaska has 7,000 to 11,000 wolves, biologists estimate. Early indications are that the program had been working, Robus said.
It is too early to tell whether the program can be salvaged, he said.
By MARY PEMBERTON, Associated Press Writer Tue Jan 17, 10:50 PM ET
ANCHORAGE, Alaska - Alaska's wolf control program, under which hundreds of the animals have been killed, is illegal because the state did not follow its own rules in establishing it, a judge ruled Tuesday.
The program was meant to boost moose and caribou populations in areas where residents say wolves are killing so many that few have been left for food. In some areas, wolves were shot by armed teams in planes.
The program has been suspended as a result of the judge's decision, said Matt Robus, director of the state Division of Wildlife Conservation. People with permits to kill wolves in the five areas of the state where the program was under way were being notified, he said.
An attorney is still analyzing the ruling to see what action the state should take, he said.
Friends of Animals, a group based in Connecticut, had sued to end the program. The ruling "tremendously gratified" its president, Priscilla Feral.
The Alaska Board of Game did not provide the required justification for the program, including previous measures that did not work, Superior Court Judge Sharon Gleason said. The board also did not explain why alternative ways to reduce the wolf population would not work.
And the board did not explain how it set wolf reduction targets in the different areas, she said.
The plaintiff's lawyer, James Reeves, said the law requires that the state "have data and present the data and establish the facts that are required in those regulations. They can't just make stuff up."
The program began in 2003. Under it, more than 400 wolves have been killed. The state had set a goal of another 400 this winter. The state issued more than 100 new permits last month.
Alaska has 7,000 to 11,000 wolves, biologists estimate. Early indications are that the program had been working, Robus said.
It is too early to tell whether the program can be salvaged, he said.
