SEATTLE - With the addition of food-storage lockers to the Colville National Forest, campers will be able to deter grizzly bears - and in turn, avoid conflict with the vulnerable species.

Groups have teamed up with the 1.5 million-acre forest in northeast Washington to install 20 steel boxes for food, to help keep grizzlies from being attracted to campsites.

Michael Borysewicz, a wildlife biologist who works for the U.S. Forest Service at the forest, said they've been installing lockers for about a decade and campers find them very convenient.

"What we've noticed when we put a locker in a given campsite is that the number of incidents of improperly stored food by campers goes down pretty dramatically," said Borysewicz.

The groups Defenders of Wildlife, Yellowstone to Yukon Conservation Initiative, Interagency Grizzly Bear Committee and Scenic Canyons Recreation Services are funding the lockers, and all of them should be installed by this fall.

Grizzlies in the region are a vulnerable species. The Selkirk Recovery Zone for the bears spans the U.S. and Canadian border.

Zoe Hanley, Northwest representative with Defenders of Wildlife, said about 10 grizzlies live on the Washington side of the border, so recovering every individual counts.

She said it can be scary when bears come into a campsite looking for food, and they might damage a tent or car. Hanley noted conflicts with humans also put bears at risk.

"That can lead to bears being removed, killed, lethally controlled from those areas when they get into conflict with people," said Hanley. "And so, this is an opportunity to keep people safe in grizzly country, and to ensure that this recovering grizzly population has the opportunity to do so successfully."

Jessie Grossman, U.S. program manager with the Yellowstone to Yukon Conservation Initiative, said grizzles need to be able to move long distances in order to maintain a healthy population.

She noted it's important that grizzlies in this region move across the Canadian border and connect with the U.S. populations.

"The Selkirk bears in particular really play an important role in that larger scale of keeping bears in North America connected and healthy," said Grossman. "And that's one of the reasons why we chose to work there."

Grossman advised people staying in grizzly country to secure their food and carry bear spray.

The Mexican Gray Wolf population in Arizona is on the rise.

For the first time since reintroduction into the wild, the population of wolves across Arizona and New Mexico sits at more than 240, with 105 of them in the Grand Canyon State.

According to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, last year's population represents a 23% increase from the 196 wolves seen in 2021.

Craig Miller, senior representative in Arizona for the nonprofit Defenders of Wildlife, has been involved with Mexican gray wolf recovery efforts since the beginning. The group is celebrating the 25th anniversary of the wolf's reintroduction. He said collaborative efforts among agencies, conservation groups and the public are to credit for the recovery.

"At the end of the day, the decision was made to proceed with reintroduction," he said. "In 1998, I had the privilege of witnessing the return of one of the most endangered land mammals the world."

Miller said his organization over the years has managed to create partnership projects that have led to the reduction of vulnerability to wolf depredation. He added that the partnerships and projects to help the Mexican gray wolves are updated and improved every year.

Regardless of the tools used by ranchers and farmers to mitigate livestock predation, he said, there will continue to be incidents involving wolves. However, Miller stressed the tools are far less important than the partnerships that have evolved from experimenting with different management strategies.

"There are a lot of tools that we can use to reduce conflicts between wolves and livestock, but by far the best tool is the human mind," he said. "And the best way to use the human mind is by connecting with others with diverse experience and diverse perspectives."

Miller said flags, air horns, electrified fencing and strobe lights are all ways in which wolves are deterred from pursuing domestic livestock and encouraged instead to pursue natural prey.

Some $20 million of Utah's whopping $29 billion state budget will be spent on building wildlife crossings and fences across the state in an effort to keep wildlife off of highways.

Rep. Doug Owens, D-Salt Lake, said the appropriation is "non-lapsing," meaning the funds can be spent over time. Owens added the federal government needs to approve a four-to-one match, which would make a grand total of $100 million available for the projects statewide.

"That is a lot of money for fencing, and crossings and underpasses," Owens pointed out. "Hopefully we'll get all that $100 million spent here in the next few years, to keep our roadways safe."

Owens noted before the legislative session began, he asked the Utah Department of Transportation to put together a list of the top 10 hot spots where wildlife mitigation projects are needed most. He added with the estimated cost of the projects, $100 million will be enough to fund them.

An estimated 5,000 deer and 1,000 elk are involved in vehicle collisions in Utah every year.

Owens argued the number of large animal and vehicle collisions needs to come down, to prevent injuries and deaths for humans and animals alike, as well as the material damage. He called the appropriation a "win for everybody."

"Utahns incur about $130 million of expense every year fixing cars that have hit animals," Owens reported. "And that doesn't even include any of the medical costs, and even the occasional fatality of a person hitting a large animal."

Utah made history in 1975 as the first state to complete a wildlife overpass on Interstate 15 near Beaver. Since then, more than 100 projects have been executed, and Owens added he is excited to see more implemented around the state.


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As part of the Inflation Reduction Act, the Interior Department has announced it is investing $120 million to restore and rebuild key segments of America's wildlife management systems, especially in key areas of the Midwest.

The money will be used to address species climate adaptation and invasive species threats, and provide additional data collection needed to support successful natural resource resilience. The money will be especially important in high-priority areas of the Midwest known as Prairie Potholes.

Christy Plumer, chief conservation officer for the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership, said the potholes are shallow wetlands where wildlife have been threatened.

"It is what we call the duck factory," Plumer explained. "A lot of waterfowl species spend really important components of their life within the Prairie Pothole region. It is a region that has a complicated set of both threats and opportunities within it."

Some $23 million is earmarked for landscape conservation and restoration in parts of Iowa, Minnesota, Montana, and North and South Dakota. The investment comes at the same time the Endangered Species Act turns 50 years old.

Plumer added much of the $120 million investment will go right to work on the land of individuals who want to protect sensitive, low-lying wetlands on their property ...

"... but still utilize the upland areas for growing crops, ranching and for other needs," Plumer emphasized. "I think a program like this provides that blend of opportunities for willing landowners to do great conservation work while also thinking long term about the economic vitality of their farms and their ranches."

Plumer noted in addition to restoring habitat and increasing land resilience, the Prairie Potholes project will also secure environmental justice for historically disadvantaged communities.