The Dilemma Over Delisting
Jess Edberg, Information and Program Specialist

Final decision recommendations on the proposal to lift federal protections from wolves in the Midwest have been sent to Washington, D.C., by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) for review by the agency’s director, Dale Hall. Removing gray wolves from the federal list of endangered and threatened species in the newly established “Western Great Lakes Distinct Population Segment” (WGL DPS) was proposed last March because wolves in this area no longer need the protection of the Endangered Species Act (ESA).

The USFWS’s Regional Listing Coordinator, Ron Refsnider, predicts that delisting may move forward relatively quickly as it is one of the cleaner, simpler decisions about wolves on the table at this time. He realizes, however, that the speed of this process could be slowed by litigation.
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