Montana Blocks Trout Egg Shipments Bound For Other States

BILLINGS, Mont. (AP) -- Montana officials are holding up shipments of tens of thousands of trout eggs from a federal fish hatchery to other states, as Gov. Brian Schweitzer seeks to pressure the Interior Department into changing the way it manages another species — bison.

Federal and state officials said Thursday that two trout egg shipments scheduled for this week to Utah and New Hampshire have been delayed. Three shipments within the state have been approved.

Schweitzer signed an order last week prohibiting any fish or wildlife shipments by the Interior Department without state approval.

The eggs were to be hatched in the receiving states and then used to stock local waterways with trout. Officials say the eggs will have to be destroyed if they're not shipped by Jan. 2.

Interior officials have rebuffed Schweitzer's proposal to allow bison hunting in parts of Yellowstone National Park to help control an animal disease. They've also resisted his idea to relocate some disease-free bison to the National Bison Range.

Also on HuffPost:

Comments

[Kenz300]

03:58 PM on 12/24/2011

Republicans are so anti American.

It is time to vote them all out of office.

[Logancbrown]

04:35 PM on 12/24/2011

Who is a republican??? Schweitzer?? Do your homework please. Last I checked, OUR Democratic governor, has the one of the highest approval ratings of any governor in the U.S. This is not a conservative move by any means.

[wanderthewest]

10:24 AM on 12/25/2011

Embarrassing knee-jerk reaction above for liberals that actually pay attention. Remember that some hold different combinations of values...or are driven by different political realities. That said, regardless of party, Schweitzer's stunt threatens to waste taxpayer dollars, and hunting (and this is a hunter typing) in a national park is just ridiculous. This article doesn't offer enough detail to determine whether the relocation request is reasonable. If people really need to shoot a bison, there has to be another way.

[farmilyman]

01:59 AM on 12/24/2011

Another conservative tantrum. Don't give in.......it's just emboldens them.

[Logancbrown]

04:39 PM on 12/24/2011

Please pay attention to the details...or what lies within the parenthesis after Gov. Schweitzers name.

[chaya]

07:26 PM on 12/23/2011

Woops. Looks like US Fish & Wildlife needs to pull its hatchery operations out of the Red States. Otherwise, rightwingers are just going to waste taxpayer money as they attempt to blackmail the government into giving them their way.

[HowthCastle]

03:56 PM on 12/24/2011

Tactics of an extortionist. As usual.

[AnthropologistAmongApes]

11:30 AM on 12/23/2011

This is ultimately about preventing the public from paying more attention to the problem of livestock on public lands and ecological function.

[olitenup]

05:50 PM on 12/23/2011

Absolutely.

[Moose Luck 99]

11:14 AM on 12/23/2011

Do not worry! Wolves can smell sick bison and will eat THEM!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YibZf7G3wjs

[wanderthewest]

10:27 AM on 12/25/2011

They want to shoot the wolves too...

[CajunSpectre]

12:06 AM on 12/23/2011

Where does a state governor get the authority to interfere with the operations of a federal facility, in this case the USFWS fish hatchery? I hope that this governor is prepared to pay retribution to the states affected by his interference by halting the shipment of these fish eggs.

[chaya]

07:28 PM on 12/23/2011

Are you kidding? No GOP politician is going to pay for wasting taxpayer money. It's what they do.

[slocomgp]

12:55 PM on 12/24/2011

Yes, it is the only thing they do efficiently.

[MarkJudiGoet]

10:39 PM on 12/22/2011

Ok, he wants the National Park Service to allow a bison hunt to control a disease, just out of curiosity, are the hunters who would participate in this hunt going to take the bisons temperature before shooting them or what ?

[CajunSpectre]

12:12 AM on 12/23/2011

Another question would be what will be done with the meat of any of these animals that are infected with brucellosis? The USDA does not allow the slaughter of cattle infected with this disease in meat processing plants. In this case, will the National Park Service allow disease contaminated bison meat leave the premises of the park?

[banana republican]

08:46 AM on 12/23/2011

You provide a perfect illustration of how people who don't have a clue get in the way of getting done, what needs to be done.

[AnthropologistAmongApes]

11:28 AM on 12/23/2011

You provide us with an example of ecological illiteracy and selfish interest. Care to find out how this is so?

[MarkJudiGoet]

12:46 PM on 12/23/2011

And you provide a perfect illustration of how people who want to force an issue feel no need to justify their actions, it was a serious question, who and how will the diseased animals be identified, and who will do the killing, professional hunters hired for the job or " Sportsmen " who just want a head on the wall and will let the diseased meat rot? And before you ask, yes I have always been and remain a hunter.

[Deep Thinking Man]

07:31 PM on 12/22/2011

Schweitzer is alsi a major player in voting top pass the killing the wolves !!!!!!

[D-Driller]

01:50 AM on 12/23/2011

About that - why aren't the wolves acting as advertised and thinning out the sick bison from the herds?

[Jim Milks]

11:22 AM on 12/23/2011

Bison are asymptomatic carriers of brucellosis. This entire situation is a tempest in a teapot, as bison have never transmitted brucellosis to cattle (see http://www.nps.gov/yell/naturescience/bison.htm for links to information).

[Just4theHalibut]

07:12 PM on 12/22/2011

Doesn't mention name of hatchery but probably Ennis. Ennis is the largest facility in the USF&W Service’s National Broodstock Program. It is one of only two rainbow trout broodstock hatcheries in the nationwide federal hatchery system. Ennis produces about 20 million rainbow trout eggs annually for research facilities, universities and federal, state and tribal hatcheries in 23 states. As a result of the Ennis Broodstock Program, economic benefits weigh-in at 5 million angler days, generating $50 million per year.

Every stream and lake angler in the US should be royally p!ssed off at Governor Schweitzer. I hope sportsmen's groups hear about this and give the Gov an earful. There is a narrow time frame remaining for viability of these eggs.

[blackwind]

07:15 PM on 12/22/2011

Sounds like the USF&W service needs to find a hatchery in a more politically friendly location.

[Talab]

12:18 PM on 12/25/2011

The federal government could exercise imminent domain , the affected states could sue Montana for loss for fishing revenue and or getting replacement stocks from another source (canada maybe ?) The federal government could recoup losses by withholding federal funds from Montana as well

[blackwind]

07:11 PM on 12/22/2011

If Schweitzer thinks this will reverse the no hunting policy of the National Park Service, he's quite the dreamer.

[ZeraLee]

06:56 PM on 12/22/2011

Is Gov. Schweitzer prepared to pay restitution to Utah and New Hampshire for the economic consequences of his interference in their economies? Are the taxpayers of Montana prepared to pay the cost of Schweitzer's interference?

How many jobs will his intransigence kill?