Commission adopts grizzly position statement

The Idaho Department of Fish and Game Commission has adopted a position statement on grizzly bears in Idaho.

The statement supports the removal of grizzly bears in Idaho from the federal list of threatened and endangered species.

"Idaho can manage the bears better," Commissioner Tony McDermott of the Panhandle Region said.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service could save millions by simply delisting the bear throughout all of Idaho, he said. The state has the regulatory and enforcement mechanisms in place, and people would be more tolerant of bears if the state were managing them.

The commission would continue to act to ensure sustainable grizzly bear populations for the foreseeable future in the occupied core habitats USFWS has identified in Idaho, the statement says.

"Key to the success of this effort is effective and efficient management of bear-human conflict."

The commission supports the prompt federal delisting and transition to state management for grizzly bears throughout Idaho as both legally compliant with the Endangered Species Act as well as the best vehicle for achieving the act's objectives, the statement says.