FIELDREPORT Northern Rockies | Summer 2018

The Endangered In Defense of Bears Species Act is Needed Now by Stephanie Adams potting a in the wild Last year, the U.S. Fish More Than Ever is a once-in-a-lifetime experience and Wildlife Service Sthat draws Americans from all 50 removed GYE grizzlies states to Yellowstone and Grand Teton from federal protection National Parks every year. The Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem (GYE), with under what NPCA believes Yellowstone at its core, is one of the last is a flawed plan... remaining habitats large enough to support grizzlies in the lower 48. The ecosystem is currently home to approxi- Last year, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service mately 720 bears, including renowned (Service) removed GYE grizzlies from federal grizzly “399,” who makes headlines every protection under what NPCA believes is a spring when she emerges at Grand Teton flawed plan, turning the management of by Sharon Mader with a handful of cubs. The path that grizzly bears outside of park boundaries over led to millions of visitors traveling to he Endangered Species Act (ESA), to state agencies in Idaho, and these national parks for the chance to signed into law in 1973, directs . Recovery of a species cannot be glimpse a grizzly did not occur overnight, federal agencies to “provide for the limited to simply increasing their numbers T and certainly not by accident. conservation of ecosystems upon which on the landscape. If we want to sustain bears threatened and endangered species of Grizzlies teetered on the brink of in Yellowstone and Grand Teton for future fish, wildlife, and plants depend.” The law generations, we must make sure strong classifies species as either endangered extinction in the 1970s until state and management plans and commitments are or threatened, and all species of plants federal land and wildlife managers in place to ensure their long-term health. and animals—except pest insects—are stepped in and began the process of eligible for listing. recovering the Yellowstone grizzly under After careful review, NPCA decided the the Endangered Species Act. The Service failed to ensure these plans provided Since the law’s creation, it has saved protection of the bears—coupled with adequate protection for grizzlies, nor did it hundreds of species of plants and animals decades of work by wildlife scientists, fully consider the ecological changes bears from extinction and protected millions public support and millions of tax payer of acres of critical habitat necessary for are likely to face in the decades to come. dollars—has led to a slow rebound of their survival. Not only does the ESA this iconic species in the GYE. continued on page 4 help to prevent extinction, it also drives species recovery, as seen with the bald eagle and peregrine falcon. Top: A grizzly bear wades through the in Grand Teton National Park ©Tom Mangelson Left: The peregrine falcon has made a strong recovery because of the Endangered Species Act. continued on page 4 ©Harry Collins | Dreamstime Worth More than Gold

by Stephanie Adams FIELD a 20 year mining ban on the 30,370 acres he only gold you should see when of public lands that are currently threatened visiting Yellowstone are fields of by these mines. This ban would prevent the REPORT Tgoldenrods indicating the coming proposed mines and provide more time for of fall or a pair of golden eagles rising on us to work with Congress to secure permanent Summer 2018 wind currents. Visitors certainly should not protection. Two members of Montana’s see a large-scale gold mine. Yet, that is a congressional delegation, Senator Tester and Northern Rockies Regional Office possible reality if multinational mining Congressman Gianforte, have already stood 321 E Main Street • Suite 424 companies have their way. They’ve proposed by Yellowstone and introduced legislation two gold mines just north of the world’s Bozeman, MT 59715 to permanently protect these public lands first national park, one of which would be from mining. (406) 577.2447 within view of the Roosevelt Arch, the park’s Bart Melton iconic north entrance. The natural landscape of Yellowstone is REGIONAL DIRECTOR more valuable than gold. Fortunately, in response to concerns from [email protected] (406) 577.2447 • thousands of national park advocates, the To learn more and find out how you can help Holly Sandbo local community, NPCA and our conservation protect Yellowstone from gold mines, visit: REGIONAL PROGRAM COORDINATOR allies, the U.S. Forest Service has proposed www.npca.org/dontmineyellowstone. [email protected] • (406) 577.2447 Kati Schmidt ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR OF COMMUNICATIONS [email protected] • (415) 728-0840 Natalie Levine GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS [email protected] • (202) 454.3326 Glacier Field Office Michael Jamison SENIOR PROGRAM MANAGER [email protected] • (406) 250.2540 Above: The iconic Roosevelt Arch at Yellowstone’s north entrance ©Devin070205chen | Dreamstime Sarah Lundstrum PROGRAM MANAGER [email protected] • (406) 250.5346 Our Last Refuge Grand Teton Field Office by Michael Jamison wilderness named for the mountain streams Sharon Mader that flow from its alpine heights. SENIOR PROGRAM MANAGER hree decades can seem an awfully long [email protected] • (307) 733.4680 stretch, especially when measured The film chronicles the leasing, the legal Tagainst a human fights, the protests and the Yellowstone Field Office lifetime. But it’s a blink partners who, alongside Stephanie Adams when calculated against NPCA, ultimately convinced PROGRAM MANAGER a culture’s connection to the U.S. government to [email protected] • (406) 224.8661 homeland. cancel all leases in the area. Rachel Caldwell The 30-year effort to safe- Oilmen continue their WILDLIFE PROGRAM COORDINATOR guard Glacier National court challenges, of course, [email protected] • (406) 320.0010 Park’s southern border- but we are patient, and we lands—wildlands sacred are persistent. NPCA Garret Visser to the Blackfeet Nation— consistently takes the WILDLIFE AND OUTREACH FELLOW is beautifully told in long view, especially when [email protected] • (406) 320.2226 the documentary film safeguarding Glacier’s Newsletter Design by KelleyAlbertDesign.com “Our Last Refuge.” timeless cultural and natural treasures against The sweeping narrative the short-term profits of begins at “the beginning those who would industri- of time,” and moves swiftly alize our shared heritage. into the early 1980s. That’s when federal land managers sold oil leases, for just $1 Watch this powerful story unfold at an acre, in the Badger-Two Medicine—a www.ourlastrefuge.org. npca.org Inappropriate Oil and Gas Development Threatens National Parks by Holly Sandbo recreational and historical values is not a he National Park System faces sustainable way to manage energy develop- unprecedented threats from oil and ment on our public lands. Tgas development near the borders of some of our greatest national treasures. Here in the Northern Rockies region, the BLM deferred a single lease near Theodore Since the start of 2017, the Bureau of Land Roosevelt National Park in North Dakota, but Management (BLM)—the entity responsible auctioned off six leases near Fort Laramie for permitting oil and gas leasing on the National Historic Site in Wyoming to the majority of federal lands—has announced highest bidder. Ironically, of the six leases at lease sales with parcels on or near the borders Fort Laramie that were offered, only one sold. of Theodore Roosevelt National Park, Zion How much did our nation’s cultural heritage National Park, Rocky Mountain National of opportunities for the public to understand go for at auction? Just two dollars an acre. Park, Great Basin National Park, Mesa Verde and comment on oil and gas leases is a NPCA believes the value of America’s cultural National Park, Great Sand Dunes National great concern, as park-adjacent oil and gas and historic heritage far outweighs any Park and Preserve, Hovenweep National development has negative impacts to visitor amount of oil or gas that could be extracted Monument, Dinosaur National Monument, experience, night skies, viewsheds, air quality at their doorsteps. Fossil Butte National Monument, Fort and noise levels in the parks. Laramie National Historic Site and others. The Department of the Interior and the The sheer quantity of sales represents a In March, Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke Bureau of Land Management must commit historic uptick in park-adjacent leasing, and temporarily deferred sales near Chaco Culture to a more consistent, inclusive process that the ensuing development of these parcels National Historical Park in New Mexico ensures new energy development on federal potentially threatens the natural and cultural citing adverse impacts to cultural resources lands prioritizes protecting national parks. resources that make these sites worthy of and the economic value of protecting lands Park Service management. near our national parks and treasured Interior Secretary Zinke grew up on the landscapes. The leases appear to be back on doorstep of Glacier National Park, so we know Equally troubling are the changes to the public the auction block for December 2018. In he understands how special America’s commenting process. New mandates to Utah, parcels near Zion National Park and national parks are to all Americans. NPCA conduct lease sales each quarter in every BLM Dinosaur National Monument were calls on Secretary Zinke to step up and field office have put significant pressure on partially deferred only after intervention by ensure no NPS-managed land is negatively BLM field staff, resulting in a much-reduced the state’s governor. The disorganized impacted by oil and gas development and public process and less environmental study approach to ‘saving’ some lands while that he meaningfully engages the public in before lease sales are conducted. The lack endangering others with equal cultural, the permitting process.

Above: A pump jack near Theodore Roosevelt National Park. ©NPCA. Bottom: Well pads along the Little Missouri River in the North Dakota Badlands. ©Chris Boyer | Kestrel Aerial Services The Endangered Species Act is In Defense Needed Now More Than Ever of Bears continued from page 1

NPCA and our tribal and conservation allies are therefore fighting this decision in court. We believe the delisting plan:

n Fails to include firm commitments from the states to maintain the existing number of bears or prevent long-term decline;

n Could open the way to hunting grizzlies on private and state land inside Grand Teton, within the John D. Rockefeller Parkway, and adjacent to Yellowstone and Grand Teton;

n Fails to include measures that would encourage genetic connectivity with other grizzly populations, leaving Yellowstone and Grand Teton grizzlies as an isolated population;

n Fails to provide the National Park Service with a formal seat at the table with Montana, Wyoming and Idaho to determine how best to manage bears that move between the parks and adjacent lands; and

n Fails to adequately consider how climate change could impact grizzly bears. continued from page 1 Simply stated, the Service’s final decision The ESA, originally signed by President Nixon with bipartisan congressional fails to assure adequate protections for support, has also enjoyed broad public support and remarkable success since GYE grizzlies into the future. its inception. This success is rooted in the tools it provides land and wildlife managers, like the National Park Service, to identify threats to a species’ survival The resiliency of this population may be and act upon them. The act empowers managers to implement policies, request tested as soon as this fall, as the state of Wyoming rushes to open a grizzly bear hunt scientific studies and execute management strategies that help bring species that could permit the killing of 24 bears back from the brink. just beyond national park boundaries. The Though national parks have always provided sanctuary for threatened and hunt even allows some hunters to utilize endangered species, these protected public lands cannot serve as islands baiting—a practice that involves enticing unto themselves. Many species are wide-ranging and rely on habitat beyond bears with human food and waiting for them the park’s protected boundaries. The ESA provides federal land managers the to approach for easy kills. We can and must leeway to work collaboratively with other federal lands managers, state do better for grizzly bears. agencies and the public to ensure we conserve America’s natural heritage.

This law is one of the most important national safeguards for protecting plants We need your help. and wildlife. Despite the inevitable controversy and conflict that can arise Join us to speak up around species preservation, it is imperative to uphold the Endangered for the bears of Species Act to ensure our children will find the same plants and wildlife we see Yellowstone and in national parks today, like grizzlies in Grand Teton, Yellowstone and Glacier. Grand Teton by telling Wyoming Governor Unfortunately, there are significant efforts occurring in Congress to weaken Mead to halt Wyoming’s and alter the act. If members of Congress move to change the ESA, we will short-sighted proposal need your help! to bait and kill Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem grizzly bears this fall. We’ll alert you if any bills to dismantle the ESA come to a vote. Visit www.npca.org/grizzlies

Above: Grizzly bears can be found in and around Grand Teton, Yellowstone and Glacier. ©Tom Mangelson Whitefish Range Partnership Finds Shared Future Through Forest Planning by Sarah Lundstrum

bout six years ago, folks with very diverse interests in Glacier Country Ahad a wild idea: let’s take ownership of our backcountry backyard and build our own future in the North Fork Flathead River Valley. We met consistently for more than a year, ultimately achieving unanimous agreement on how U.S. Forest Service lands adjacent to Glacier National Park’s wild western border should be managed. The Flathead National Forest has now adopted all of our key recommendations, proving that local input matters and that people were elevated throughout the park-adjacent Range for at least the next 20 years. More who work together in good faith can have Whitefish Range. It is a historic agreement, importantly, the relationships we built a positive impact. and a remarkable outcome, and will bring through the partnership will endure and benefits to Glacier National Park for allow the difficult but necessary conversa- Our effort, the Whitefish Range Partnership, generations to come. tions around our public lands to happen focused exclusively on forestlands located just a little easier. north of Whitefish and west of the North In the grand scheme of conservation work, six Fork Flathead River, stretching from Big years isn’t that long—but these past six years Above: The North Fork Flathead River flows Mountain to Glacier National Park to the will lead to decades of conservation on the past Glacier National Park through the golden larch of fall. ©Trevor Eagleton Below: An Canadian border—a region known as the ground. The Flathead National Forest plan is illustration of the WRP agreement, from Whitefish Range. NPCA organized this scheduled to be signed in Washington, D.C. recommended wilderness and wildlife habitat diverse group, whose partners included this summer, and will be the guiding near the Canadian border, to timber harvest and landowners, business owners, wilderness document for management of the Whitefish multiple-use recreation next to Whitefish. advocates, motorized recreationists, horse- men, hunters, anglers, mountain bikers, timber interests, and wildlife and trails advocates, among many others.

This was the first time that many historically divided interests had sat together in the same room to recognize our shared love of the North Fork and Glacier National Park as a touchstone for a shared future. In the beginning, no one was sure where we were headed, or what would come of it. But after the first few meetings—and ample servings of elk chili and cornbread—we defined our collective vision for the Whitefish Range and began putting our recommendations for the Forest Service on paper.

Partnerships such as these require tremen- dous time and resources over multiple years, but that’s what we do. We understand the heritage we’ve inherited, and we keep the long vision in focus for the legacy we’d like to leave behind. Our partners make it possible.

In the end, we unanimously submitted recommendations on 10 subjects to the Forest Service for how the area should be managed, all of which improve the integrity of the Greater Glacier Ecosystem—from forest health to clean water to recreation to wildlife connectivity to wilderness solitude. By supporting one another, all of our values NonProfit U.S. Postage NORTHERN ROCKIES REGIONAL OFFICE 321 E Main Street • Suite 424 PAID Helena, MT 59601 Bozeman, MT 59715 Permit No. 221

INVISIBLE BOUNDARIES Exploring Yellowstone’s Great Animal Migrations

by Sharon Mader ational Geographic photojournalist ecosystems on earth, encompassing of the challenges to elk migration captured and filmmaker Joe Riis has devoted 18 million acres in northwest Wyoming, in his photos highlights the value of retaining Nyears to documenting animal southwest Montana and eastern Idaho. these traditional paths across Wyoming migrations in the Greater Yellowstone Riis’s stunning photography and compelling and Montana. Ecosystem. His ground-breaking work follows video portrays the vast scale of these historic the extensive journeys of pronghorn, mule migrations across the GYE, the perils these To learn more and see a sample of his deer and elk, bringing national attention to animals face during their travels and the wonderful work, join NPCA and the National the importance of preserving habitat in key need to protect these precious corridors in Museum of Wildlife Art in Jackson, Wyoming, wildlife migration corridors. Riis’ work has the face of population increase and on June 26 for a special presentation by also illuminated how little we truly know industrialization in these rural states. Joe Riis. about these historic journeys—some of the longest in the lower 48 states. Riis’ most recent book, “Yellowstone Migrations: Preserving Freedom to Roam,” Above: Migration photo demonstrates that The Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem (GYE) follows his photographic journey of the Yel- pronghorn antelope prefer to go under fences verses jumping over them. ©Joe Riis is one of the largest intact temperate-zone lowstone elk migration. The up-close view