- January 27, 2005 (Thursday) in Glenwood, NM, facility yet to be selected, from 1:30 – 9:00 p.m. (evening meeting) – Focus on the Five-Year Review (see below)

- January 28, 2005 (Friday) in Alpine, AZ, facility yet to be selected, from 1:30 – 9:00 p.m. (evening meeting) – Focus on the Five-Year Review (see below)

- April 22, 2005 (Friday) in San Carlos, AZ, Apache Gold Casino on the San Carlos Apache Reservation, from 1:30 – 5:00 (afternoon meeting)

- June 17, 2005 (Friday) in Reserve, NM, facility yet to be selected, 1:30 – 5:00 p.m. (afternoon meeting)

- October 14, 2005 (Friday) Clifton-Morenci AZ, facility yet to be selected (afternoon meeting)

Following are some preliminary comments about the Five-Year Review, referenced above with the January 27-28 AMWG meeting information.

According to the nonessential experimental population rule that authorized the Mexican Wolf Reintroduction Project, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USSFWS) is required to conduct a “Five-Year Review” of the Project. The Five-Year Review is a formal evaluation of the biological, administrative, and socio-economic aspects of the Project. Although the fifth year of the Project ended on March 28, 2003, the Five-Year Review will address the period through December 31, 2003. Data from 2004 will not be included because the Review analyses have already begun, and the year is not complete.

AMWG is assisting USFWS in structuring and conducting the Review to help ensure and provide opportunities for public participation.

The draft Review documents will probably be available to the public on or about December 4, 2004. The documents will be disseminated in electronic format (a) via the MW Reintroduction Project News, (b) as downloads from various websites, and (c) on compact discs available at specified local libraries and government agencies. Details on availability will be included in the Reintroduction Project News. Hard copy (printed copy) will NOT be mass distributed.

The public comment period for the Review will begin when the draft Review documents are electronically distributed to the public. If the comment period begins in early December, it will last through February 15, 2005.

Only written comment submitted through the U.S. Postal Service will be accepted. Comment must be postmarked no later than February 15, 2005.

The January 27-28 AMWG meetings will provide opportunities for the public to discuss the draft Review documents with the cooperating agencies. Locations and times for the January 27-28 AMWG meetings were chosen to facilitate attendance by local residents in the northern and southern portions of the area of Arizona and New Mexico in which the reintroduction is occurring. Additional discussion meetings may or may not be scheduled in other areas during the public comment period.

Review discussion meetings will probably involve brief presentations on the Review by AMWG cooperators, including field staff, and extended question and answer periods to better inform the public. Again, the Review meetings will be informal discussion sessions, not formal “hearings” with verbatim transcripts “for the record.” However, flip charts will likely be used to record key comments to help project staff complete the Review.

A series of “Open Houses,” such as was conducted with the Three-Year Review in 2001, is not being considered at this time. The 2001 “Open Houses” provided little more than a “referendum” as to whether people and organizations supported or opposed wolf reintroduction. The reintroduction project is a matter of law, as has been discussed in several AMWG meetings. The courts have clearly and repeatedly affirmed the legality of the reintroduction, and the mandate to pursue it as a component of wolf recovery. Hence, AMWG’s focus in the Five-Year Review will be on objectively identifying specifics about what has worked well and what has not worked well thus far in the reintroduction project, and what should be done in terms of law, regulation, policy, and/or procedure to improve the project to better address the relevant recovery and social issues.

Details of the Five-Year Review process are still being worked out, and changes from the process above might occur. Information about the Review will be distributed via the Reintroduction Project News, so be sure that your subscription is up-to-date. Today’s e-mailed message is simply a heads-up from the cooperating agencies regarding the general schedule, the probable public comment period, and the January AMWG meetings so you can consider making plans to participate.