Grizzly bears could soon roam Washington forests in controversial plan

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

Grizzly bears could soon find a home in Washington forests decades after they were hunted out of the area.

According to the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW), grizzly bears haven’t been seen in the North Cascades since 1996. Therefore, they are considered an endangered species.

Last week, the U.S. National Park Service (NPS) U.S. Department of the Interior and U.S. Fish and Wildfire Service outlined a plan to reintroduce the bears to the North Cascades.

The plan states three to seven grizzly bears would be released into the North Cascades every year for around five to 10 years. The agencies want to foster a population of around 25 bears before switching to “adaptive management.”

https://mynorthwest.com/3955755/grizzly-bears-could-soon-roam-washington-forests-controversial-plan/

[flying_wahini]

1. May put a damper on those forest trails, tho.

I don’t think that would be a good way to go. My sister had bears on her property in BC, they can be scary in a stupid way. Don’t have enough fear to run away when threatened.

[Eko]

2. How can that be controversial?

To put bears back in forests they were in. Crazy world.

[TeamProg]

3. The California Brown Bear that graces our flag is in fact a grizzly bear. Having backpacked, fished

and camped throughout the Sierra Nevada, I’m more glad than not that black bears were the only large animal in these mountains. Black bears would come into our camp approx 50% of the time but were only a threat to our food, not us. Black bears, with coats of several colors, were more of a problem before the portable food canisters were popularized. Hanging food in stuff bags in trees as we did before having food cannisters only worked so-so. I would have dreaded knowing grizzlies were out and about.

I have concerns about reintroducing grizzlies into the highly visited Cascades.