License Not to Kill

Wolves: You can live with them if you really want to.

Opponents of wolves typically say that living with wolves is not possible, but that seems to be more of a perspective choice than an absolute reality. Washington state is demonstrating that people make the difference in determining the outcome of human-wolf interactions.

As this polling shows, residents of Washington, Oregon, and California are supportive of having wolves around. Therefore, it's no surprise that Washington is finding ways to support wolf populations. The latest piece of the strategy moves into place on October 1 when car owners in the state can begin purchasing vanity license plates that fund non-lethal wolf-management tactics, including range riders, which I blogged about two weeks ago. For more information about the plates, how to get them, and the programs they help fund, visit this page on Conservation Northwest's Web site.

Washingtonians' efforts to make a place for wolves ultimately show that the fate of these animals will come down to our willingness to share an existence with them.