Dear Wildlife Services Oregon State Director: Thank you for the opportunity to submit scoping comments on the environmental impact statement ("draft EIS") for the U.S. Department of Agriculture ("USDA"), Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service ("APHIS"), Wildlife Services' ("Wildlife Services" and "WS-Oregon") Predator Damage Management ("PDM") in Oregon. 86 Fed. Reg. 6,290 (Jan. 21, 2021). Our comments, which are attached, are submitted on behalf of the Animal Welfare Institute, WildEarth Guardians, the Center for Biological Diversity, Western Watersheds Project, Western Environmental Law Center, Mountain Lion Foundation, Project Coyote, Cascadia Wildlands, Animal Legal Defense Fund, Predator Defense, and Kettle Range Conservation Group. Thank you for your consideration of our comments. Sincerely, Johanna Hamburger Director and Senior Staff Attorney Terrestrial Wildlife Program Animal Welfare Institute
Predator Damage Management in Oregon
Activity
Animal Welfare Institute filed 2 comments on this docket between Jan 27, 2021 and Feb 23, 2021. 4 other organizations filed here. The comment window closed 1302d ago.
What Animal Welfare Institute filed (2)
Attached is Animal Welfare Institute's request for a 60-day extension of the comment period to provide scoping comments for the environmental impact statement on predator damage management in Oregon. Thank you for considering this request.
Abstract
Wildlife Services (WS), a program within the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), has issued a Record of Decision (ROD) for its Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) titled “Predator Damage Management (PDM) in Oregon.” On September 1, 2023, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published a notice of availability in the Federal Register (88 FR 60451, Docket No. 2023-18938) of the WS-Oregon FEIS. After the required 30-day review period, WS signed the ROD on October 3, 2023. The FEIS analyzed the potential environmental impacts of six alternatives for WS-Oregon’s involvement in activities in the state. The ROD documents WS-Oregon’s selection of the preferred alternative (Alternative 2) to continue current predator damage management activities with provisions for WS-Oregon’s involvement in managing gray wolf damage and threats under Phases I-III of the 2019 Oregon Wolf Conservation and Management Plan. The ROD concluded that none of the alternatives were likely to result in significant impacts to the environment, and that Alternative 2 best meets the Purpose and Need and Objectives. Alternative 2 allows WS-Oregon to respond to the greatest number of requests for PDM assistance using an integrated approach that includes education, technical assistance, non-lethal and lethal methods, while giving preference to non-lethal methods when they are appropriate and effective.
View on regulations.gov →Co-filers (4)
See everyone who commented →- Animal Welfare InstituteTHIS ORG2 filings · confidence 97%
- Defenders of Wildlife1 filing · confidence 97%
- Nina Counciltrade assoc.1 filing · confidence 85%
- NPT Executive Committeetrade assoc.1 filing · confidence 85%
- Oregon Hunters Associationtrade assoc.1 filing · confidence 85%