Wildlife "Refuge" Trapping Report Released
By Stephen Wells

The US Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) finally released its report on trapping in National Wildlife Refuges this summer. It's conclusion? Trapping is "an important tool that should continue to be available to [wildlife] refuge managers." Not only that, but "trapping also provided benefits for public health and safety and recreational, commercial, and subsistence opportunities for the public." This startling declaration forms the core of an 87-page report transmitted to Congress by the FWS on June 3.

The report was written by the FWS in lieu of a report by a "task force" as Congress had requested. The task force was supposed to include "interested outside parties" and report directly back to Congress. Issues to be considered included the "humaneness," and "overall impact" of trapping on National Wildlife Refuges, and "other relevant issues." The information gathered was to be provided to Congress "without editorial change or policy alteration."

Instead of a public task force, the FWS decided to gather information from its own Wildlife Refuge managers, and request public comments separately. In response to the request, the Alliance alerted members and others of this process. The result was hundreds of letters protesting some aspect of trapping, or any trapping at all, on National Wildlife Refuges. The Alliance also provided substantive comments on trapping in Alaska's National Wildlife Refuges.

Alliance comments cited serious concerns with how the FWS manages trapping on Wildlife Refuges. One concern was the impact of trapping on the health and diversity of Wildlife Refuge ecosystems. Thousands of animals are trapped and snared in Alaska's National Wildlife Refuges each year for the commercial value of their fur. Species commonly targeted by trappers include wolves, wolverine, lynx, fox, beaver, marten, and many more. Yet the FWS does not keep track of how many animals are trapped on individual Wildlife Refuges. This has led to serious depletions of some of the more heavily targeted species, including wolves, lynx, and marten

Part of the problem is that regulation of trapping on Wildlife Refuges is left to the Alaska Department of Fish and Game. That means little if any regulation at all. For example:

• There are no bag limits for almost all species trapped.
• Trappers are not required to check their traps periodically to reduce suffering and waste.
• No reliable records are kept as to the number of animals trapped on individual Wildlife Refuges, or the number of "nontarget" or "trash" animals trapped. Trash animals include caribou, moose, bears, eagles, and family pets.
• Until last year, it was legal for anyone with a $15 trapping license to use and airplane to track wolves, then land and shoot them. The practice was only ended by a citizen's ballot initiative.

Trapping on Alaska's National Wildlife Refuges is, in short, a national disgrace. Despite having the authority, the FWS has failed to fill in these regulatory gaps with regulations of its own.

Other comments from the public indicated similar concerns with many calling for an end to any trapping on National Wildlife Refuges at all. Yet not a single mention of this outpouring of public concerns and perceptions about trapping appear in the FWS's 87-page report. Not one.

The Alliance asked Ken McDermond, Assistant Director of Refuges and Wildlife in Washington, DC why the FWS report contains no reference to public comment. McDermond replied that the report is Afact-based, and thus didn't contain public comment." Fact-based? Yes, the report does contain a lot of facts, like 11 different reasons why animals are trapped on National Wildlife Refuges; a summary of all the major trapping programs on individual Wildlife Refuges; and a list of all the species of animals trapped. Yet collecting such meaningless facts was not the objective of the Congressional request.

Let's consider some more relevant facts not mentioned in the report. Like the fact that by the FWS's own accounting the vast majority of visitors to Wildlife Refuges are there to see or photograph wildlife or simply be surrounded by unadulterated wildness. It is a fact that these "nonconsumptive" visitors prefer to see wildlife and are more likely to see wildlife in an area closed to hunting and trapping. Why aren't more closed areas provided? It is a fact that National Wildlife Refuges, whether in Alaska or Indiana, belong to all Americans. Why doesn't the management of these "refuges" reflect their values or sentiment?

Aside from the "facts" and more to the point of the congressional request, the conclusion of the FWS "fact-based" report is a glowing, not to mention self-serving, account of the benefits of trapping to National Wildlife Refuges. By providing these opinions of Wildlife Refuge managers as the "facts," and public comment completely separately from the facts, the FWS is minimizing the impact and importance of public sentiment. It is a fact the FWS is a public agency managing public resources on public lands. It is also a fact that the public is deeply concerned about the effects of trapping on its land and wildlife. Indeed, that would seem to be the most important fact of all.

WHAT YOU CAN DO: Let your Senators know that they are not getting the full story on trapping on National Wildlife Refuges. If you sent a letter of comment during the process, be sure to send them a copy. Tell them that the FWS ignored the Congressional request of a task force process and then disobeyed its own process by providing a report that completely ignored public comment and relevant biological information on the harmful effects of trapping. It is even more important if one of your Senators is a member of the Subcommittee on Interior Appropriations. Members of that committee are listed below, with their party affiliation and state in parentheses (R=Republican, D=Democrat):

Slade Gorton (R-WA), Ted Stevens (R-AK), Thad Cochran (R-MS), Pete Domenici (R-NM), Conrad Burns (R-MT), Lloyd Bennett (R-UT), Judd Gregg (R-NH), Ben Nighthorse Campbell (R-CO), Robert Byrd (D-WV), Patrick Leahy (D-VT), Dale Bumpers (D-AR), Ernest Hollings (D-SC), Harry Reid (D-NV), Byron Dorgan (D-ND), Barbara Boxer (D-CA)

If you are interested in contacting Ken McDermond at the FWS, his number is (703) 358-5184 or e-mail him at Kenneth_McDermond@fws.gov. Ask him how the FWS can separate public sentiment from "fact." Also ask why their "fact-based" report didn't contain the facts about how many animals are actually killed on National Wildlife Refuges in Alaska, or the facts about the so called "trash" animals or unintended victims of traps and snares. The Alliance will continue to follow this process and keep our members informed.