Gov. Inslee mirrors environmental groups on wolf removal

Gov. Jay Inslee’s letter Friday directing the Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission to write a rule on killing wolves stresses putting more obligations on ranchers to prevent attacks on livestock. As Inslee noted, he can’t dictate the rule’s content, but he called for “clear and enforceable measures,” including “action plans in areas of chronic depredation to end the need for annual lethal removal.” Inslee also asked that mandatory non-lethal deterrents be tailored for “specific situations” and for the department to adopt “compliance measures” when ranchers fall short. The letter reflected the concerns of the Center for Biological Diversity and three other environmental groups that petitioned Inslee to order the rule. A wolf advocate not involved in the petition warned about pushing livestock producers too far...MORE