WASHINGTON – Gray wolves will remain on the endangered species list in Washington state.
The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife commissioners voted 5-4 against downlisting the status of the species Friday morning.
Commissioners were considering downlisting the species to either ‘threatened’ or ‘sensitive.’ Motions for both reclassifications were voted down 5-4.
Gray wolves have been on the endangered list since 1980. Over the previous 14 years, the state has strictly followed a wolf recovery program that has assisted in boosting the wolf population.
Some commissioners felt there was enough promising growth to justify downlisting the status of gray wolves, arguing doing so would not create a serious risk of extinction.
“We have done incredibly well,” said Commissioner Jim Anderson. “I think everyone would agree that the wolf numbers have showed way more robust numbers than we possibly expected.”
Farmers have also been huge advocates of kicking wolves from the endangered species list, which have wreaked havoc on livestock throughout the state.
Those in opposition, however, say there isn’t enough biological data to support that the species is strong enough to survive without these protections.
“As of yet we are not in compliance with the recovery plan and are premature in downgrading,” argued Commissioner Lorna Smith.
Smith, along with other dissenting commissioners, said they should continue following the guided recovery plan implemented in Washington 14 years ago, saying the state has not met the recovery standard necessary to justify downlisting.
The Dept. of Fish and Wildlife is expected revisit this topic during their next status review hearing, which is in five years.
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