Idaho-based Environmental groups file lawsuit against USDA Wildlife Services

A lawsuit has been filed against the US Department of Agriculture's Wildlife Services and the US Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) in US District Court by five conservation groups in Idaho. According to Western Watersheds Project and four other groups, federal officials in Idaho are violating environmental laws and conducting lethal predator controls without the required reviews. The groups said that FWS is failing in its responsibility when it comes to enforcing protections required by the Endangered Species Act. The agency is illegally allowing Wildlife Services to carry out its operations without fully understanding the consequences. The 40-page lawsuit was assigned to US District Judge Edward Lodge in Boise on February 11. It stated that the agency is killing wolves, coyotes and other wildlife to protect livestock and crops. Federal officials are using aerial shooting, trapping, explosives, poison gas cartridges, poison bait and livestock collars that release poison gas during attacks. The lawsuit also contends that the agency has never prepared an Environmental Impact Statement in order to evaluate wildlife damage management in Idaho. It has instead relied only on an outdated model, which runs contrary to effects of killing wildlife...more