Predator Damage Management Revisions

June 16, 2006 -- The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Forest Service (FS) released a Federal Register Notice on June 7, 2006, proposing to revise its directives on predator damage management in wilderness areas.

The proposed revisions are intended to strengthen the FS role in working with Wildlife Services (WS) and state fish and wildlife agencies pertaining to wildlife damage-management activities, while recognizing that WS and state fish and wildlife agencies have the authority and expertise to conduct wildlife damage-management activities in wilderness areas on forest service lands. For this reason, the FS is removing a provision in current policy that requires case-by-case regional forester approval for predator-management activities in wilderness areas.

The four goals outlined in an interdepartmental Memorandum of Understanding include: 1) protect public health and safety; 2) protect federally listed threatened or endangered species; 3) achieve management goals and objectives for wildlife populations as identified for wilderness in forest or wilderness plans, or through other collaborative processes; and 4) prevent serious loss of domestic livestock.

Comments are due on or before Aug. 7, 2006. To access the Federal Register, go to: http://a257.g.akamaitech.net/7/257/2422/01jan20061800/edocket.access.gpo.gov/2006/E6-8839.htm.

Staff contact: Tate Rosenbusch, 303-771-3500

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