Alaska Llamas & Outdoors Blog

Excerpt from Objection to ANWR Pack Llama by Scott Woodruff (Lander Llamas) Thank you for this one and only meaningful opportunity to publicly comment on the prohibition of pack llamas on our public land in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) based upon the threat of disease transfer to wildlife. Specifically, the proposed regulation change to 50 CFR part 36 published in the Federal Register on April 9th, 2020 with relationship to cited justification in the 2015 Record of Decision (ROD) for the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge Revised Comprehensive Conservation Plan (CCP), and also new and recent submitted information and research outside of the ROD in 2015, by USFWS and ANWR. In 2010, the ANWR sent out a notice of intent to revise the 1988 Arctic National Wildlife Refuge Comprehensive Conservation Plan (1988-CCP). The subsequent public development of the new document Artic Refuge Draft Revised Comprehensive Conservation Plan (DCCP) was submitted for comments. In the D...

W e need your help again. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) recently announced that it is proposing to eliminate the pack llama (camelid) user group as part of a proposed regulation package. This is yet another attempt (in Alaska) to ban camelids as a disease threat to wildlife that is scientifically untenable. Because of your help earlier this year we were able to defeat a similar proposal by the U.S. Forest Service in Alaska (Chugach National Forest). Your participation will be critical in order to win this next battle. Again, this could set a precedent and adversely affect our future access on public lands throughout all of the United States if allowed to stand. Please object to this proposal by submitting a comment as per the instructions below.   Thank you in advance for your support! You can submit a comment on this to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in one of two ways described below. All comments need to be submitte...

See article "Pack Llamas Under Siege on Alaska's Public Lands." Lots of good info in this newsletter. Support LANA! LANA's Spring Newsletter Llama Association of North America (LANA) Spring newsletter cover photo features llamas on Lost Lake Trail (Alaska) with Resurrection Bay in the background.

We just received word from Chugach National Forest (CNF) late January 28th that announced CNF's decision to rescind the llama ban in Chugach National Forest. (See previous blog posts for background/history on CNF's LMP and llama ban.) The "Reviewing Officer's Response to Eligible Objections" to the Chugach National Forest Land Management Plan (CNFLMP) was attached to an email sent to objectors. In the Conclusion section David Schmid (CNF Regional Forester) states: "After considering the planning record, discussions with Forest staff, and the thoughtful dialog at the resolution meeting, I’ve decided to provide Forest Supervisor Schramm instructions to change FWWLGOAT-S (2) to the following: Personnel conducting Forest Service management actions or authorized activities (employees, contractors, cooperators, and special use permit holders) shall not use or keep domestic goats or sheep on National Forest System lands within the Chugach National Forest." (No...

The Chugach National Forest (CNF) "objections resolution meeting" took place during the afternoon of January 14, 2020 in Anchorage, Alaska. (See previous posts for background on CNF Llama Ban.) The purpose of the meeting was to discuss remedies regarding objections to restrictions on the use of llamas that are being imposed in the Chugach National Forest Land Management Plan (CNFLMP). Dave Schmid, Alaska Regional Forester (meeting facilitator) confirmed that this is our last opportunity to comment/object to the Chugach National Forest Land Management Plan which will be final in 2020. Meeting attendees representing the llama community in-state and out-of-state participated via teleconference and reiterated concerns to CNF staff that were previously expressed in their written objections which can be found here. https://cara.ecosystem-management.org/Public/ReadingRoom?project=40816 . At issue is the restricted use of pack llamas in Chugach National Forest (the forest) based ...

UPDATE: CNF llama ban has been rescinded.  More at -   Victory! CNF Llama Ban Rescinded Chugach National Forest (CNF) "short circuited" the NEPA process by providing no pubic notice to eliminate commercial use of pack llamas based on a perceived disease threat to wild sheep and goats. Since CNF's ban identifies pack llamas as a disease threat, this opens the door to eliminate them for all uses (including recreational) in the future. The public process was "short circuited" because CNF did not include verbiage that banned llamas in their draft Chugach National Forest Land Management Plan that was open for public comment in 2018.  However, this pack llama ban was added to the Final Chugach National Forest Land Management Plan after the public comment period was over which effectively eliminated comment by the pack llama user group . Now the pack llama user group is faced with protesting the final CNF decision during the objection period. Your comments on p...