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Public comment is sought on a bison quarantine measure, at the behest of the National Park Service.
The program would quarantine Yellowstone bison at one or more new facilities. These facilities would not be limited to Yellowstone National Park; proposed facility locations for bison quarantine include tribal lands and other locations.
The program would quarantine bison for a period of time to screen and inoculate them against brucellosis, a disease that causes spontaneous abortions in cattle. Once brucellosis free, the bison quarantined at the facility would be released back into the park or onto other public/tribal lands.
Rather than slaughter brucellosis-positive animals, the bison quarantine program would seek to conserve the population and allow it to expand into historic ranges, both for cultural education and for the benefit of Native American populations.
The quarantine proposal follows requests made by conservation and Native American officials for select Yellowstone bison to be relocated outside the Park.
An Environmental Assessment is being prepared alongside the proposal, in accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act and Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act.
If you are interested in commenting on the proposed bison quarantine program, you are free to attend the following meetings, scheduled for later in August:
Monday, August 18: Yellowstone Association Headquarters, 308 Park Street, Gardiner, MT
Tuesday, August 19: Homewood Suites, 1023 East Baxter Lane, Bozeman, MT
The meetings will be presented at 6 p.m., with a predicted end of 8 p.m.
Alternatively, if you cannot make either meeting, you may submit comments here through the Park Planning site or you may mail comments to the following address:
Compliance Office, Attn: Yellowstone Bison Quarantine EA
P.O. Box 168
Yellowstone National Park, WY 82190
Comments will not be accepted by fax or e-mail. Comments must be individual and not delivered in bulk. To be considered, all comments concerning Yellowstone bison quarantine must be delivered by midnight MDT on September 12, 2014.
