Protection Plan Likely

Interior Secretary Bruce Babbitt says wildlife authorities may seek full protection for the wolves in Yellowstone National Park if an appeal fails to overturn a judge’s ruling that the reintroduction program is illegal.

The wolf recovery program in Yellowstone “is a tremendous success,” Babbitt told the Casper Star-Tribune.

“We are not going to walk away from it as long as there is any way of working this out legally.”

U.S. District Judge William Downes ruled last week the wolf recovery program in the park and central Idaho was illegal because it reduced Endangered Species Act protection for wolves that might wander into the area from Montana. Several environmental groups and the Wyoming Farm Bureau have vowed to appeal. The Justice Department will have the final decision on whether the government will appeal.

Babbitt said if appeals fail, authorities could seek to place the transplanted wolves under the Endangered Species Act, but he was unsure if that protection could be extended legally.

An appeal would defend the decision of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, he said.

“Of course it has absolutely captured the imagination of the American people and brought tourists and income and attention to both Yellowstone and Wyoming,” he said. “So (the ruling) is very disappointing.”