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WildEarth Guardians’ response to the Grizzly Bear Review and Resource Restart Act of 2023

Anti-wildlife Republicans are proposing to remove Endangered Species Act protections for grizzly bears

Date
July 28, 2023
Contact
Adam Rissien, WildEarth Guardians, (406) 370-3147, arissien@wildearthguardians.org
In This Release
Public Lands, Wildlife   Grizzly bear
#DefendCarnivores, #EndTheWarOnWildlife, #EndangeredSpeciesAct, #PressStatement, #Rewilding, #StopExtinction
Republican lawmakers are advancing another bill that would remove protections for grizzly bears under the Endangered Species Act. S.2571, the Grizzly Bear Review and Resource Restart Act of 2023 was introduced on July 27 in the Senate by Sens. Risch (R-ID), Crapo (R-ID), and Lummis (R-WY) with a companion bill expected to be introduced in the House of Representatives by Rep. Fulcher (R-ID). In addition, Rep. Ryan Zinke (R-Mont.) added an amendment to the House Appropriations Committee’s fiscal 2024 Interior-Environment funding bill last week that would require the delisting of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem grizzly bear population. This follows a previous bill introduced in February by Sen. Lummis (R-WY), S. 445 titled “Grizzly Bear State Management Act of 2023,” that would also remove grizzly bears in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem from the endangered species list, and H.R. 1419 titled the “Comprehensive Grizzly Bear Management Act of 2023”, sponsored by Rep. Rosendale (R-MT) that removes Endangered Species Act protections for the Northern Continental Divide Ecosystem grizzly bear population. 

WildEarth Guardians, a nonprofit organization that protects and restores the wildlife, wild places, wild rivers, and health of the American West, offers the following statement on this proposed legislation: 

“Just as Congress breaks for the August recess, lawmakers from Idaho, Wyoming, and Montana are ramping up their attacks on grizzly bears, even as deaths continue to climb this year,” said Adam Rissien, rewilding manager at WildEarth Guardians. “These anti-wildlife Republicans are proposing to remove Endangered Species Act protections for grizzly bears with more bills and an amendment to must-pass funding legislation, even as grizzly bear mortalities reach almost 30 from the Northern Continental Divide and Greater Yellowstone populations.”

Grizzly bears are an integral part of our natural heritage, and the increasing mortality rates in these populations are deeply concerning. Removing their Endangered Species Act protections could have severe consequences for their long-term survival and the ecological balance of the regions they inhabit.

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