Wherever grizzlies thrive, so does wildness, clean water, and abundant native fish and wildlife. We support restoring a healthy population of grizzly bears to the North Cascades, their home for thousands of years.
LATEST NEWS, September 2023: Long-Awaited North Cascades Grizzly Plan Should Restore Threatened Population
Our Purpose
The North Cascades Ecosystem, anchored by North Cascades National Park, contains one of the largest areas of wild and protected land in the lower 48 states. As an extraordinary piece of our shared natural heritage, it’s important we pass it on, with all its native wildlife, for the benefit of future generations.
The Friends of the North Cascades Grizzly Bear supports recovering the North Cascades grizzly bear population through best available science and community involvement because it will help keep the Northwest a natural, beautiful and sustainable place in which to live, work and play.
Status
Decline due to Hunting, Trapping & Poisoning
The fur trade led to the swift decline of the grizzly. Nearly 3,800 grizzly hides were shipped out of the area’s forts between 1826-1857. The surviving population was poisoned, trapped, and hunted in the early 1900’s. The last confirmed grizzly bear sighting in Washington’s North Cascades was in 1996.
Rewilding the North Cascades
Tribes, recreationists, and local people have called for the restoration of grizzly bears to the North Cascades Ecosystem. The grizzly is a federally threatened species, and the North Cascades is one of few places with enough space and food to sustain them. Federal agencies are moving forward with an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) to determine how to bring grizzly bears back.
Plenty of Room for Bears & People
The North Cascades Ecosystem includes more than 2.6 million contiguous acres of federally designated wilderness. The area spans the international border and has hundreds of foods to sustain grizzly bears. Biologists estimate it could take 100 years to reach a population of 200 bears. The Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem has over 800 bears, and over 1,000 grizzlies are estimated to live in the Northern Continental Divide Ecosystem. Both these systems support robust recreation industries, surpassing what exists in the North Cascades.
Implementation
With your help, we can restore the grizzly bear. We support moving about 25 bears from Canada and the Northern Rockies to the area to allow recovery to begin. Implementation will take decades of monitoring, careful management, and some good luck to be successful. But with a little help, we can restore the last major missing piece of the North Cascades.
