Wolf livestock predation compensation agreement
May 15, 2005
A working group of Montana citizens and agencies agreed this week on a general framework that seeks to help livestock operators avoid problems caused by wolves and to reimburse them when damages occur.
The 30-member group, which met in Helena four times this spring, agreed to create a Livestock Loss Reduction and Mitigation Program aimed at decreasing wolf-damage risks through prevention, active management of the state's wolf population, and through a program to reimburse livestock operators for losses caused by wolves.
The agreement in part fulfills a Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks commitment under Montana's wolf conservation and management plan to help create a workable compensation program. The group still needs to work out additional details and a source of long-term funding.
Compensation for wolf-caused livestock damages and losses is currently offered to Montana livestock owners by the Defenders of Wildlife, a private, nonprofit group that seeks to protect wild animals and their habitats.
FWP recently assumed management responsibilities from federal authorities for the state's recovered, but still federally protected wolf population. With the help of federal funding, FWP is carrying out much of Montana's approved wolf conservation and management plan while continuing to work toward the rapid delisting of the gray wolf in Montana.
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