OPINION: Grizzly Bears Don’t Belong In North Central Washington

Earlier this month, central Washington Representative Dan Newhouse, wrote a letter to the new head of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, asking that grizzly bears not be reintroduced in the north Cascades ecosystem.

By Dan Newhouse Member of Congress 

The Honorable Brian Nesvik Director
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
1849 C Street, NW Washington, D.C. 20240  

Director Nesvik,  

Congratulations on your recent confirmation. As the elected Representative for the State of Washington’s Fourth Congressional District, I write to you today on behalf of my constituents with several requests for your consideration.  

During the previous administration, my district faced more than its fair share of top-down mandates from the federal government without their consent or consultation. I am looking forward to working with the Trump Administration to reverse and rectify these disastrous decisions.  

The Biden Administration abused the Endangered Species Act to the detriment of my constituents. Despite years of widespread opposition, the Biden Administration finalized a 10(j) rule to establish an experimental, nonessential population of Grizzly Bears in the North Cascades Ecosystem in the northern part of my district. To date, no grizzlies have been moved into the ecosystem. We hope that we can work with you to prevent such a move from happening.  

I request your consideration of the following:  

• Halt the Movement of Grizzly Bears into the North Cascades. The administration should halt the movement of grizzly bears to establish a non-essential experimental population in the North Cascades Ecosystem. It is imperative for the safety of residents, their livestock, and their crops that this population is not established. This final rule from the previous administration ((89 Fed. Reg. 36982 (May 3, 2024)) went against the wishes of my constituents and Washington State Law (RCW 77.12.035) and should immediately be repealed. Reversing this rule would reduce red tape to the farmers and ranchers that would be affected by a second predator population in the state and is directly in line with Executive Order 13790. To that effect, we request that you reverse this final rule and make no efforts, including signing any memorandums of understanding, to bring Grizzly Bears into the North Cascades. 

• Delist the Grizzly Bear and Reject Biden Fish and Wildlife Proposal for one distinct population segment. The administration should delist the Greater Yellowstone and Northern Continental Divide ecosystem grizzly bear populations. Science and population numbers have shown that the grizzly no longer warrants endangered species protections and it should be removed from the endangered species list. The administration should also reject the proposal to create one distinct population segment for the grizzly bear. This proposal by the outgoing administration is yet another example of pandering to extreme environmental organizations and is an attempt to keep the grizzly on the endangered species list in perpetuity.  

• Delist the Gray Wolf. Science and drastic population increases have proven it is time to delist the Gray Wolf. In Washington the issue of this predator is quite complicated, as the gray wolf is only listed as endangered in two thirds of the state. Meaning, my constituents have to abide by arbitrary political boundaries when it comes to predator management whereas the predators see no boundaries and continue to cause livestock predation issues. This is seen not only here, but across that U.S. and the time is now that the gray wolf be delisted in the lower 48 states.  

As the immediate past chair of the Congressional Western Caucus, I know firsthand the damage to the American West that the previous administration imposed through overregulation. It is my hope that we can work together to ensure land and species management prioritizes the rights of landowners. I would welcome a meeting after the August Recess to discuss these issues in further detail.