US congressman urges feds to reconsider grizzly bear proposal

A U.S. Representative from Washington does not want grizzly bears to be reintroduced into the North Cascades.

“As a farmer, I worry not only about the bears destroying my crops, but for the safety and well-being of myself, my family, and my on-farm hands,” said Representative Dan Newhouse (R-WA) at a public meeting in Omak reported by the Okanogan Valley Gazette-Tribune.

The plan is a federal proposal that would release three to seven grizzly bears into the north-central Washington state over a decade. The idea is to establish a population of 25 bears.

“It is clear you all know that grizzles can and probably will move out of the zone in which you drop them, yet rather than letting common sense prevail, are continuing to push forward with this dangerous plan,” Newhouse explained.

Monday’s public meeting was the first of four scheduled this week by the Park Service and U.S. Fish and Wildlife to hear from people on a draft environmental impact statement that evaluates options for restoring the bears in the North Cascades.

More on the proposal: National Park Service considers plan to bring grizzly bears back to the Cascades

Newhouse introduced a bill last month that could stop the federal agencies from proceeding. He has been consistent in his criticism of the proposal.

Federal officials say the bears would be beneficial to the area’s ecosystem because they dig and disperse seeds. They explained that the bears tend to avoid humans.

They are also important to some native American and First Nation tribes.

The last confirmed grizzly bear sighting in the area was in 1996, but a small population has been documented in northeast Washington and northern Idaho along the Canadian border.

The draft proposal read that the process “will identify a range of alternatives for restoring the bears to the mountainous region to support the recovery and eventual delisting of grizzly bears under the Endangered Species Act in the contiguous United States.”