Home Page Hot Topic

{{custom_field.photo_credit}}

Federal Court in Oregon Rejects Miners’ Challenge to Suction-dredge Regulations

March 25, 2016 — This morning a federal court upheld an Oregon law restricting motorized gold mining in and along sensitive salmon streams. The District of Oregon court held that the State of Oregon has the right to regulate both state and federal land to protect water quality and fish habitat, and it has done so in a manner that does not conflict with federal law.

House Bill 4040 and the Politics of Delisting Oregon’s Wolves

by Nick Cady, Legal Director It is astonishing to folks at Cascadia Wildlands that House Bill 4040 (HB4040) was even a topic of conversation this “short” legislative session. Every other year, the Oregon legislature holds a short session that only lasts around one month, and because of the limited time for discussion and debate, usually … Read more

Cascadia Wildlands Challenges Wildlife Services’ Wolf Killing in Oregon

February 3, 2016 — Conservation groups filed a lawsuit today challenging the authority of the federal wildlife-killing program Wildlife Services to kill any of the approximately 81 remaining gray wolves in Oregon. The legal challenge, filed by the Western Environmental Law Center on behalf of four conservation groups, with Cascadia Wildlands representing itself, comes weeks after a federal court ruled that Wildlife Services’ controversial wolf killing program in Washington is illegal.

Stand Up for Public Lands!

In the midst of the ridiculous scene unfolding at the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge, bigger, darker, and more intelligent forces are working to give away our public lands.  Our public lands, our National Forests, our Wildlife Refuges, our National Parks, our Wild and Scenic Rivers, these are cherished and revered places across the Northwest. They … Read more

Public Lands Rallies Planned Across Oregon

#RefugeRally Announced for Tuesday, Jan 19th Public will gather to support Malheur refuge, celebrate national public lands OREGON/WASHINGTON- Rallies supporting Malheur National Wildlife Refuge and public lands will be held across Oregon and Washington Tuesday, January 19th at noon.The public is invited to join this statewide event expressing appreciation for national public lands, their public … Read more

Cascadia Files Petition to Extend Wolf Monitoring

January 6, 2016 — Five conservation groups filed a petition today requesting that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service continue monitoring northern Rocky Mountain gray wolves for another five years. The existing monitoring program, which is required by the Endangered Species Act after protections are removed for a species, is set to expire in May. The monitoring is crucial to ensure that the wolf population doesn’t slip to levels at which Endangered Species Act protections are again needed.

Suit Filed to Restore Endangered Species Act Protections for Wolves in Oregon

December 30, 2015 — Three conservation groups filed a legal challenge  today to the removal of protection from gray wolves under Oregon’s Endangered Species Act. According to the challenge, the 4-2 decision by the Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commission to delist wolves violated the law by failing to follow best available science and prematurely removing protections before wolves are truly recovered. With only about 80 known adult wolves mostly confined to one small corner of the state, Oregon’s wolf population is far from recovery, according to leading scientists.

Huge Legal Victory for Washington’s Wolves

December 21, 2015 — In response to a challenge brought by a coalition of conservation organizations, a federal court rejected plans to escalate cruel wolf killing in Washington state by the secretive federal program dubbed “Wildlife Services.” Federal District Judge Robert Bryan held that Wildlife Services should have prepared a more in-depth environmental analysis of the impacts of its proposed wolf killing activities, finding the program’s cursory environmental assessment faulty because the proposed actions would have significant cumulative impacts that are highly controversial and highly uncertain.

FDA Approves Frankenfish, Cascadians Resist

By Gabe Scott, Alaska Legal Director   CORDOVA, AK— Frankenfish may be coming to a store near you, but not if we can help it.      Last week's decision by the Food & Drug Administration to approve Genetically Engineered Salmon for sale in the United States is hugely important. There are a lot of moving … Read more

From Exterminated to a Rebounding Population: A Brief History of Wolves in Oregon

By Legal Director Nick Cady   Given the state’s recent move to remove the gray wolf from Oregon’s list of threatened and endangered species, it is worth taking a full look at the history of this species in Oregon to fully put in context the recent decision.   In 1947, the last wolf was killed … Read more

Cascadia Wildlands Joins Lawsuit to Protect Wild Salmon and Clean Water from Gold Mining

November 20, 2015 — To defend an Oregon law designed to protect wildlife from damaging gold mining along waterways, a broad coalition of groups moved to intervene today in a lawsuit by mining interests challenging the restrictions. Passed by the Oregon Legislature in 2013, Senate Bill 838 placed restrictions on gold mining using suction dredges and other motorized equipment along streams to prevent harmful impacts to salmon and develop a permitting process to better protect Oregon’s waterways. Miners are now alleging that the state law conflicts with federal laws passed in the 1800s to encourage westward expansion.

Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commission Removes Protections for Imperiled Gray Wolf

November 10, 2015 — In the face of overwhelming opposition from the public, political leaders, and the scientific community, the Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commission voted last evening to remove the gray wolf from the state’s list of endangered species.  There are approximately 80 wolves in the state.