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WASHINGTON — Gray wolves in several Western states, including Utah, will be removed from the Endangered Species List, the Department of the Interior said Wednesday.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services will reinstate a 2009 rule delisting wolves in the Northern Rocky Mountains, which include Idaho and Montana and parts of Oregon, Washington and Utah. Congress directed the action in its 2011 appropriations bill passed last month. The rule will be effective Thursday.
"The gray wolf's biological recovery reflects years of work by scientists, wildlife managers, and our state, tribal, and stakeholder partners to bring wolf populations back to healthy levels." Interior Secretary Ken Salazar
“Like other iconic species such as the whooping crane, the brown pelican, and the bald eagle, the recovery of the gray wolf is another success story of the Endangered Species Act,” Interior Secretary Ken Salazar said in a press release. “The gray wolf’s biological recovery reflects years of work by scientists, wildlife managers, and our state, tribal, and stakeholder partners to bring wolf populations back to healthy levels.”
Fish and Wildlife and the states will continue to monitor wolf populations and gather data for at least five years under a post-delisting monitoring plan.
Earlier this year, the Utah Legislature approved a resolution urging Congress to remove wolves from the list.
During Senate debate, Sen. Chris Buttars, R-West Jordan, said animals have "ups and downs, but a wolf is a killing machine, is a killing machine, is a killing machine. That's it."
The proliferation of wolves the past few years threatens the Utah economy, particularly in agricultural areas, said Sen. Allen Christensen, R- North Ogden. Not only are wolves hurting rural jobs, they are taking a toll on wildlife and livestock, killing pets and threatening people.
Christensen said state wildlife agencies are better prepared to manage wolves than the federal government.
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