Judge strikes down livestock grazing plan in Montana griz habitat

Monique Merrill

(CN) — Conservationists are celebrating after a federal judge on Wednesday ruled the U.S. Forest Service violated federal law when it authorized expanded livestock grazing in grizzly bear habitat outside of Yellowstone National Park in Montana.

“I’m thrilled the court struck down the federal government’s illegal decision to increase livestock grazing in important grizzly bear habitat,” said Andrea Zaccardi, carnivore conservation legal director at the Center for Biological Diversity. “Putting livestock on public lands where grizzlies live is akin to baiting these bears into conflicts.”

U.S. District Judge Donald Molloy, a Bill Clinton appointee, ordered the Forest Service to take another look at its East Paradise plan. That plan authorized expanded commercial livesto