Restoring grizzlies to N. Cascades study to resume

SPOKANE, Wash. — Environmental groups on Thursday hailed a decision by the Biden administration to resume studying whether grizzly bears should be restored to the remote North Cascades mountains in Washington state.

The National Park Service and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service said they would jointly prepare an environmental impact statement on restoring the endangered bears to the North Cascades ecosystem.

Humans killed the bears off from the ecosystem long ago, and restoration there will contribute to the general recovery of the animals in the Northwest, the agencies said.

“This overturns the Trump administration’s rash termination of these plans,” said Andrea Zaccardi of the Center for Biological Diversity. “Without a helping hand, grizzly bears are likely to disappear from the Pacific Northwest.”

But Republican U.S. Rep. Dan Newhouse, who represents central Washington, criticized the plan.

“The introduction of grizzly bears into the North Cascades would directly, and negatively impact the people & communities I represent,” Newhouse tweeted. “It is disappointing our voices are once again being ignored, even after the last process was discontinued due to overwhelming local opposition.”

Newhouse said introducing an apex predator to the area would threaten families, wildlife and livestock.

The agencies began a study of restoring grizzly bears to the North Cascades through a trapping and relocation process in 2015. But in 2020 the Trump administration terminated the process without explanation. The Center for Biological Diversity filed a lawsuit challenging the termination.

The North Cascades is one of the largest wild areas in the lower 48 states, encompassing more than 9,500 square miles.