Now, protect farmers

Now, protect farmers

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: The Interior Department’s decision last Friday to remove the gray wolf from the endangered species list is a sensible measure that allows Wisconsin and some other states to find the proper balance between protection of wolves and protecting the rights of farmers whose livestock could be threatened by a burgeoning wolf population.

The recovery of the gray wolf in Wisconsin, Michigan and Minnesota is one of the great success stories of the Endangered Species Act. But with success has come a responsibility: to make sure the wolf population doesn’t become so large that it poses a threat to the livelihood of farmers.

According to the Wisconsin Farm Bureau Federation, 37 livestock were killed by wolves in 2007 and 30 farms suffered a kill by a wolf. Those farmers need some protection from a growing wolf population, and authorities in states where wolves have developed a healthy population need to be able to reasonably manage those populations.