U.S. Senate lifts ban on predator killing in Alaska refuges
The U.S. Senate today voted to overturn an Obama Administration rule that banned certain methods of killing predators on national wildlife refuges in Alaska.
The vote was 52 to 47.
The Obama administration wanted to ban killing bear cubs and wolves in their dens, killing bears over bait and other practices that opponents deem inhumane.
The methods aren’t broadly allowed in Alaska anyway, but the state Game Board said they’re tools that it should be able to deploy, when needed, to restore a balance between predator and prey species.
Alaska’s congressional delegation argued that the state has the right to manage hunting throughout Alaska and that the rule violated the statehood compact and other federal laws.
The House has already voted to overturn the regulation. President Trump is expected to sign the repeal.
An identical Park Service regulation remains on the books related to hunting on Alaska’s national preserves.
Related stories from around the North:
Canada: More Grizzlies and wolves moving north to High Arctic, Radio Canada International
Finland: Wolves shot amid “exceptional number” of backyard sightings in Western Finland, Yle News
Norway: Pet passports needed between Sweden and Norway, Radio Sweden
Russia: Are wolves from illegal Russian kennel in Finland?, Yle News
Sweden: More wolves can be culled after Supreme Court decision, Radio Sweden
United States: U.S. Republicans introduce bill to repeal Obama’s predator regulation for Alaska, Alaska Public Radio Network
