wildlife

Montana Survey Reveals Widespread Support for Grizzly Bears

For Immediate Release

Groups Challenge Trump Administration’s Latest Assaults on the Endangered Species Act

HONOLULU, HAWAI’I-- Today Earthjustice filed two lawsuits in the District of Hawai’i in response to the outgoing administration’s most recent attacks on the Endangered Species Act, the law that serves as the last safety net for animals and plants facing extinction. Toward the end of last month, the Trump administration issued two new regulations that strip vital protections from federal lands and other areas that the best available science indicates are necessary for the conservation of threatened and endangered species.  

Groups Challenge Trump Administration Over Gray Wolf Delisting

SAN FRANCISCO, CA — Today six environmental groups filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration’s rule that removed Endangered Species Act protections for gray wolves in the lower-48 states except for a small population of Mexican gray wolves in Arizona and New Mexico. The U.S.

Trump Administration Strips Protections from Migratory Birds

In the midst of the first human-driven mass extinction with over 1 million species at risk of disappearing forever, the Trump administration has finalized a rule stripping critical protections of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. This reckless move is the latest in a slew of efforts by the Trump administration to gut vital safeguards for wildlife.

Chronic Wasting Disease Reaches Elk in Grand Teton National Park

Jackson, WY--  Today, the National Park Service and Wyoming Game and Fish Department reported that an elk tested positive for chronic wasting disease in Grand Teton National Park. Chronic wasting disease  (CWD) is a rapidly-spreading wildlife epidemic that is killing elk, moose and deer herds across the country, particularly in western states. CWD is a neurological ailment that is always fatal and has the potential to wipe out entire herds of elk.

Congress, Nevada Delegation Deny Military Expansions Onto Public Lands

Reno, NV-- A broad coalition of conservationists, Native Americans, sportsmen and women, elected officials and others are celebrating the Congressional vote today that denies the U.S. military its long sought-after expansions of two major facilities in Nevada, at the Fallon Naval Air Station and the Nellis Test and Training Range. 

Trump Administration Pushes Forward Plan to Allow Harassment of Threatened Polar Bears in the Arctic Refuge

Today, the US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) released a proposed authorization that would allow for the harassment of threatened polar bears as part of destructive seismic testing for oil in the coastal plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. Much of the Arctic Refuge is designated as critical habitat for polar bears because mother bears den and nurture their cubs there during the winter.

Sierra Club Statement on Montana Grizzly Bear Advisory Council Recommendations

Helena, MT— Today, Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks staff will present final recommendations of Governor Bullock’s Grizzly Bear Advisory Council for grizzly bear management in the state at a meeting of the Montana legislature’s Environmental Quality Council.

Trump Administration Proposes New Habitat Cuts for Endangered Species

WASHINGTON, D.C— The Trump administration today announced a new proposed rule to circumvent establishing habitat protections for endangered species. The rule follows a string of other proposals to weaken the Endangered Species Act, including another rule proposed just last month putting additional restrictions on designation of critical habitat. 

Sierra Club Statement: Wyoming Needs a Stronger Plan to Tackle CWD

Pinedale, WY-- Today, the Wyoming Game and Fish Commission approved an updated plan to address the state’s rapidly-accelerating chronic wasting disease wildlife epidemic. The plan includes additional and more targeted monitoring for the disease statewide, and some plans to minimize artificial animal concentration areas. The plan does not address artificial winter feeding of elk.

9th Circuit Upholds Endangered Species Protections for Yellowstone Grizzlies

SAN FRANCISCO--The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals today upheld the Montana District Court’s opinion that reinstated Endangered Species Act protections for the Yellowstone region’s grizzly bear population. The decision spares the grizzlies from plans for trophy hunts in the states of Wyoming and Idaho. 

Earthjustice, representing the Northern Cheyenne Tribe, Sierra Club, Center for Biological Diversity and National Parks Conservation Association, argued for restoring protections to Yellowstone grizzly bears.

Trump Administration Advances Unprecedented Stripping of Protections for Wildlife

Washington, DC— Today as the country faces an uprising for racial justice and ongoing pandemic, the Trump administration’s Department of the Interior released its Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) in efforts to strip critical protections in the Migratory Bird Treaty Act.