Based on past experience, the 2021 Montana Legislature could extinguish any possibility to restore public, wild bison anywhere in our state. Unless discussion of this issue begins now, it could
happen with little public awareness. Why should Fish, Wildlife & Parks and the federal Fish & Wildlife Service bring back bison to the Charles M. Russell National Wildlife Refuge?
The Montana constitution mandates preventing unreasonable degradation of a natural resource, restoring historic, cultural and recreational objects for use and enjoyment by the people, and preserving the opportunity to harvest wild game. These mandates must include wild bison.
The national goal to restore and maintain genetically diverse plains bison is severely constrained by not allowing bison on the CMR Refuge, the largest federal refuge within the historic range of plains bison. Moreover, the refuge goal of restoring natural biological processes cannot be fulfilled without bison restoration. The refuge plan welcomes the opportunity to work with Montana in
developing a plan and analysis for restoring wild bison on the refuge.
Polls have shown that 70% of Montana voters support restoration of bison on the CMR Refuge.
Legislative guidelines protect and indemnify private property and resources in any bison restoration project.
There is a very large, unmet demand for hunting and harvesting bison in Montana. (There were over 18,000 applications to harvest a bison near Yellowstone Park in 2019.)
Restoring a public-trust, wild bison herd within the CMR Refuge can enhance and diversify economic opportunities in and near Phillips County.
Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks, with many years of diverse public outreach and inputs, concluded in a record of decision that bison management issues can be successfully addressed at a landscape scale and therefore solicited site-specific proposals from Montana citizens.
Jim Bailey
Belgrade
Bozeman Daily Chronicle Letter to the Editor 7/7/20