Grizzly Bears Should be Returned to the North Cascades

Grizzly bear

Grizzly bears have recently been in the news for being granted federal protection in and around the Yellowstone region. However, the battle to ensure the bears' protection and well-being in their home range is still continuing with the Center for Biological Diversity recently filing a lawsuit against the Trump administration for failing to issue public records on the completion of a program to restore the bears to the North Cascades in Washington state. Earlier this month, David L. Bernhardt, Secretary of the Interior, announced that his agency will not carry out the environmental impact statement required to move forward with the plan. The decision spurred the Center to file the lawsuit in federal court on Tuesday in Washington D.C. The lawsuit is seeking documents related to the administration's long-standing opposition to grizzly bears in the North Cascades. The debate over bringing the bears back to the North Cascades has been going for several years. The Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) recognized the North Cascades as one of the essential recovery areas for the grizzlies. It is estimated that there are only few bears in the proximity of the North Cascades in recent years. A study by the FWS in 2011 counted fewer than 20 bears on the U.S side of the border, and a hiker photographed one in 2010. In one study, the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife wrote that "grizzly bears are not currently known to occupy the North Cascades ecosystem in north-central Washington..." The Center for Biological Diversity stated that scientists think that the North Cascades area contains enough habitat to support about 280 bears. A population is known to inhabit the Selkirk Mountains in eastern Washington, but state officials think all bears in the state are individuals from other populations in Idaho and British Columbia.

View of the North Cascades

I have always learned and understood that grizzly bears once inhabited the entire western half of the U.S before being reduced to populations inhabiting Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming. They also inhabit the North Cascades in the Pacific Northwest, but they primarily consist of individuals from neighboring populations. I think it is crucial to bring grizzly bears back to the North Cascades. The region is one of several places in the western U.S where these majestic bears had disappeared decades ago. Bringing them back would greatly benefit the North Cascades ecosystem, in which they can keep the vegetation, fish, and animal populations under control. If grizzly bears in the Yellowstone region are able to keep the ecosystem healthy, why can't they do that in the North Cascades? I strongly believe that restoring grizzly bears in the North Cascades would require probably bringing the ones from other areas with larger populations, but the planning should be done concertedly. Also, the introduced bears should be monitored closely and carefully in order to see how well they are adapting to the North Cascades. Once again, it is best to leave it to scientists and experts to determine how the restoration efforts should be conducted. But the North Cascades must have grizzly bears to help sustain its ecosystem.

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