| CHEYENNE,
Wyo. – Governor
Mark Gordon expressed his gratitude to Secretary of the Interior David Bernhardt
after the Secretary intervened to call off a planned mountain goat culling
through aerial gunning in Grand Teton National Park. The culling was scheduled
to begin last Friday.
Bernhardt’s
order to “stand down” came in a phone call to Gopaul Noojibail, acting Grand
Teton Park superintendent late Friday. The call was made after Governor Gordon
shared with Bernhardt a strongly-worded letter sent to Noojibail Friday
afternoon. In the letter the Governor criticized the Park Service’s choice to
“act unilaterally aerially executing mountain goats over the State of Wyoming’s
objections.”
“I
appreciate the excellent working relationship we have with Secretary Bernhardt
and that he is willing to discuss this issue in more detail without the pressure
of ongoing aerial hunting,” Governor Gordon said. “I look forward to a more
fruitful conversation about better ways to address this issue in a more
cooperative manner.”
The
aerial gunning operation targeted a population of mountain goats that
potentially pose a threat of spreading disease to the native bighorn sheep
population and compete with the sheep for habitat.
The
Wyoming Game and Fish Commission passed a resolution last month condemning the
use of aerial gunning to remove mountain goats from the Targhee herd and urged
Grand Teton to use skilled volunteers as the removal method. In a letter dated
Jan. 28, 2019, the Department formally recommended the Park use skilled
volunteers for mountain goat removal. Wyoming Game and Fish Director Brian
Nesvik also made a third request to stop the plan on Friday, citing public
disapproval.
“We
remain prepared to work with Grand Teton to meet their management objectives
using methods that align with the value Wyoming people have for wildlife,”
Nesvik said. |
