Greater Yellowstone Coalition Jackson Hole Alliance for Responsible Planning American Buffalo Foundation Gallatin Wildlife Association Defenders of Wildlife David A. Ritchey v. Bruce Babbitt, Secretary, United States Department of Interior Roger Kennedy, Director, National Park Service Michael Finley, Superintendent, Yellowstone National Park Daniel Glickman, Secretary, United States Department of Agriculture Jack Ward Thomas, Chief, United States Forest Service Terry Medley, Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, and State of Montana Marc Racicot, Governor of the State of Montana, Defendants-Intervenors-Appellees. Intertribal Bison Cooperative Defenders of Wildlife Greater Yellowstone Coalition Jackson Hole Alliance for Responsible Planning David A. Ritchey v. Bruce Babbitt, in His Official Capacity as Secretary of the Interior, Denis Galvin, in His Official Capacity as Acting Deputy Director of the National Park Service Michael Finley, in His Official Capacity as Superintendent of Yellowstone National Park Michael Dombeck, in His Official Capacity as Chief of the United States Forest Service Terry Medley, in His Official Capacity as Governor of the State of Montana Laurence Peterson, in His Official Capacity as Executive Officer of the Montana Department of Livestock State of Montana, Department of Livestock, a State Agency Patrick J. Graham, in His Official Capacity as Director of Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks State of Montana, Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks

175 F.3d 1149

GREATER YELLOWSTONE COALITION; Jackson Hole Alliance For
Responsible Planning; American Buffalo Foundation;
Gallatin Wildlife Association; Defenders of Wildlife;
David A. Ritchey, Plaintiffs-Appellants,
v.
Bruce BABBITT, Secretary, United States Department of
Interior; Roger Kennedy, Director, National Park Service;
Michael Finley, Superintendent, Yellowstone National Park;
Daniel Glickman, Secretary, United States Department of
Agriculture; Jack Ward Thomas, Chief, United States Forest
Service; Terry Medley, Administrator, Animal and Plant
Health Inspection Service, Defendants-Appellees,
and
State of Montana; Marc Racicot, Governor of the State of
Montana, Defendants-Intervenors-Appellees.
Intertribal Bison Cooperative; Defenders of Wildlife;
Greater Yellowstone Coalition; Jackson Hole
Alliance for Responsible Planning;
David A. Ritchey Plaintiffs-Appellants,
v.
Bruce Babbitt, in his official capacity as Secretary of the
Interior, Denis Galvin, in his official capacity as Acting
Deputy Director of the National Park Service; Michael
Finley, in his official capacity as Superintendent of
Yellowstone National Park; Michael Dombeck, in his official
capacity as Chief of the United States Forest Service;
Terry Medley, in his official capacity as Governor of the
state of Montana; Laurence Peterson, in his official
capacity as Executive Officer of the Montana Department of
Livestock; State of Montana, Department of Livestock, a state agency;
Patrick J. Graham, in his official capacity as Director of
Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks;
State of Montana, Department of Fish,
Wildlife and Parks,
Defendants-Appellees.

Nos. 98-36151, 98-36152.

United States Court of Appeals,
Ninth Circuit.

Argued and Submitted April 13, 1999.
Decided May 6, 1999.

James S. Angell, Earthjustice Legal Defense Fund, Bozeman, Montana, for the plaintiffs-appellants.

1

Andrew Mergen, United States Department of Justice, Washington, D.C., for the defendants-appellees.

2

John E. Bloomquist, Doney, Crowley, Bloomquist & Uda, Helena, Montana, for the intervenors-appellees.

3

Appeals from the United States District Court for the District of Montana; Charles C. Lovell, District Judge, Presiding. D.C. No. CV-96-00082-CCL.

4

Before: PREGERSON and THOMPSON, Circuit Judges, and KELLEHER,1 Senior District Judge.

ORDER

5

We affirm for reasons set forth in the district court's well-reasoned opinion and order reported at Intertribal Bison Cooperative, et al., v. Babbitt, 25 F. Supp. 2d 1135 (D. Mont.1998).

6

SO ORDERED.

1

The Honorable Robert J. Kelleher, Senior United States District Judge for the Central District of California, sitting by designation