On Tuesday, August 1, 2017 the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed a lower court ruling from 2014 that vacated a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) decision to remove Endangered Species Act (ESA) protections for gray wolves in the western Great Lakes region, which includes Michigan, Minnesota, and Wisconsin.
The USFWS decided to delist gray wolves in December 2011. Immediately, state officials in the Great Lakes region took steps to open wolf hunting and trapping seasons, which resulted in the deaths of more than 1,500 wolves over two seasons. Born Free USA, along with a coalition of wildlife protection groups, including the Humane Society of the United States, brought a lawsuit against the USFWS, and the agency’s delisting decision was overturned by the D.C. District Court in 2014. The appeals court ruling reaffirms the 2014 decision, maintaining federal protections for wolves and blocking states from opening sport hunting and commercial trapping seasons targeting wolves.
Born Free USA is also currently fighting Congressional attempts to pass legislation that would be devastating for wolves. Similar to the efforts by the USFWS to remove ESA protections for wolves, S. 1514 includes the “War on Wolves” legislation, which would strip wolves of necessary federal protections and open the door to aggressive hunting and trapping of wolves in these same states.
Prashant K. Khetan, CEO and General Counsel for Born Free USA, says: “The D.C. Circuit’s ruling reminds us all – including, I hope, Congress and the Administration – that the Endangered Species Act has as much meaning today as it did when it was passed nearly 45 years ago. This was not just a win for gray wolves in the Great Lakes, but a win for each of us that plays a role in protecting wildlife.”