A federal court ruled Wednesday the U.S. Forest Service broke the law when it expanded livestock grazing in grizzly bear habitat north of Yellowstone National Park.
U.S. Federal District Court Judge Donald Molloy found the agency failed to analyze the effects of more grazing on public lands in the area.
Molloy found the government also failed to properly analyze how expanded grazing could impact the bears’ ability to safely move across their habitat range. Connectivity between bear populations around Yellowstone and Glacier has been identified as a key component of recovery.
The court ordered the Forest Service to prepare a new analysis and vacated the agency’s decision to expand grazing on those allotments.
The Endangered Species Act helped bring the Yellowstone-area grizzly population back from the brink of extinction. It also sparked controversy over a question that looms over more species than just grizzly bears: How do we balance the needs of endangered wildlife with the needs of humans?
