Alaska to resume bear-killing program, despite court order finding it to be void
A bear hunts for salmon in Katmai National Park. (National Park Service photo)
The Alaska Department of Fish and Game said Friday it will resume its predator control this weekend in Western Alaska, despite a court ruling two days earlier that determined the program remains in violation of the state constitution.
The program, which is using aircraft to kill bears in the area used by the ailing Mulchatna Caribou Herd, will resume on Saturday, the department said in a statement.
In its statement, the Department of Fish and Game said Superior Court Judge Christina Rankin's decision against issuing a restraining order that was sought by an environmental organization, the Alaska Wildlife Alliance, allows predator control to be carried out, as authorized by the Board of Game in March.
'The court order did not prohibit these activities or invalidate emergency regulations adopted by the Alaska Board of Game on March 27, 2025,' the statement said.
The program is needed to improve calf survival so that the herd size can grow enough to support hunting, the department's statement said. 'During the peak, this herd provided as many as 4,770 caribou for the subsistence needs of more than 48 local communities, as well as hunting opportunities for all Alaskans and nonresidents,' the statement said.
While Rankin declined to issue a restraining order sought by the Alaska Wildlife Alliance, she ruled that the need for such an order was moot. Her ruling, issued Wednesday, said the state remained bound by an earlier decision, issued on March 14 by Superior Court Judge Andrew Guidi, which found that the program was unconstitutional. The Board of Game's action two weeks later failed to address the deficiencies that Guidi identified, she said.
The Mulchatna predator control program was initially authorized in 2022. It started in 2023. Through it, 180 bears and 19 wolves have been killed, according to the department.
The program has been carried out during spring and early summer, the time of year when the caribou are giving birth to their calves that department officials say are vulnerable to being killed by bears.
The Alaska Wildlife Alliance on Friday before the state announcement already had filed a new application for a restraining order to prevent the startup of this year's predator control, along with additional information providing evidence that the state was gearing up to kill bears.
Joe Geldhof, an attorney for the alliance, accused the state of violating the judge's order.
'This is so wrong on so many levels. And it's now turning into a constitutional fight,' he said late Friday, after the department announced that its predator control will resume.
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