Handling wolves
While lawmakers are in session, the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife is expected to update its wolf count. The census may spark talk about how to manage the animals when they are no longer listed as endangered under federal or state law, said Moses Lake Republican Judy Warnick, the incoming chairwoman of the Senate Agriculture, Water and Rural Economic Committee.
“The more they spread, the more willing people will be to have these discussions,” she said.
Kretz needled wolf advocates in 2013 with a bill proposing to relocate wolves close to Seattle. The legislation never got a hearing, but it succeeded in getting people talking, Kretz said.
This year, Kretz said he may propose regional delisting, releasing wolf-populated regions of Washington from the state’s wolf recovery plan.
Such a move would ease growing tensions between state wildlife managers and eastside counties, he said.
“I seriously hope I could get it done,” Kretz said.
Olympia 2015: Wolves, water and taxes top ag agenda – Capital Press.