Spring has arrived, and for many Montanans that comes along with excitement for warmer days ahead. But for the hard-working cattle ranchers in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem, springtime brings new challenges. One of those is the risk of brucellosis, a reproductive disease that elk and bison can transmit to cattle. Each year, thousands of […]
[…] abundance. Today, the wolf is following in their footsteps. Wolf restoration in the West began in 1994 when 41 wolves were reintroduced to their former range in Yellowstone National Park. They were followed a year later by an additional 15 wolves released into the wildlands of Central Idaho. Three years later, 11 wolves of […]
[…] West-style violence. And wildlife issues, especially when they involve large carnivores, arouse intense controversy. Several decades ago, when one Montana environmentalist, Hank Fischer, met with ranchers in the Yellowstone region to discuss reintroducing wolves, his proposal was met with hostility. “Hank Fischer!” a rancher shouted as the meeting began, “Ain’t nobody killed you yet?” Wolves have […]
[…] Parks’ draft grizzly bear management plan. PERC applauds FWP for its role in recovering grizzly bears, Montana’s state animal, in the Northern Continental Divide Ecosystem and Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem and for the work that went into this proposed statewide plan. The recovery of grizzly bear populations in the state has been an incredible conservation […]
A podcast about PERC’s Brucellosis Compensation Fund and efforts to conserve the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem.
PERC CEO Brian Yablonski joins Yellowstone Public Radio to discuss PERC’s new Brucellosis Compensation Fund.
[…] critical habitat for migrating elk. The project brings together a coalition of conservationists, hunters, ranchers, and community members to protect elk migration and open space. The Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem’s iconic migrating elk herds depend on working lands for their survival. Thousands of elk descend on Montana’s Paradise Valley every year to feed on ranch […]
Crowding at Midway Geyser Basin boardwalk near Grand Prismatic Spring in Yellowstone National Park. © NPS Testimony before the U.S. House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations Hearing on “Lessons from the Field: Overcrowding in National Parks” Main Points Recent visitation growth in some national parks comes with real management challenges for ensuring […]
[…] Barbara and a Master’s in Applied Economics from Montana State University. Explore Dr. Leonard’s recent work: A Plan to Solve the Colorado River Crisis The Role of Private Lands in Conserving Yellowstone’s Wildlife in the Twenty-First Century Conservation Groups Should Be Able to Lease Land to Protect It Allow “Nonuse Rights” to Conserve Natural Resources
[…] policy encourages negative-sum litigation and political conflict. On private land, similar conflicts can be—and often are—resolved through collaboration and voluntary means. For instance, PERC and the Greater Yellowstone Coalition recently partnered with a rancher in Paradise Valley, MT, on an “elk occupancy agreement” under which the conservation groups compensated the landowner for managing 500 […]