The National Park Service Continues To Try To Stop Attempts By Activists To Bring Thirsty Tule Elk Water; Urgent Action Is Needed To Save Them!

Twenty wildlife and national park protectors recently defied National Park Service (NPS) orders for a second time and risked getting arrested while participating in a bold, carefully planned, nighttime operation to bring 150 gallons of water to the Tule elk. The move follows the tragic passing of more than 18 Tule elk this year who died in the reserve at Point Reyes National Seashore due to California’s drought.

As previously reported by WAN, the animals are blocked from reaching perennial sources by an eight-foot-tall fence. The action took place before the winter rains came, but were thwarted by the NPS which removed troughs before the thirsty Tule elk could drink.

“The actions of the National Park Service speak loud and clear: private ranching business is favored over public opinion and the lives of native wild animals at Point Reyes National Seashore,” Fleur Dawes of In Defense of Animals said in an email sent to WAN. “Removing water from thirsty and dying rare Tule elk is despicable. Bay Area residents overwhelmingly want these native wild animals protected over private interests. We support the merciful actions of these brave animal activists and urge everyone to take urgent action to save the Tule elk.”

Video recorded by Silver Reaction Media shows a peaceful but physically demanding action with over a dozen animal advocates hauling water hundreds of yards over rough terrain and in coastal fog.

Off-camera, others kept watch, signaling any arrival of sheriff and park rangers. They were quiet, using minimal light, so park visitors, rangers, and live-in ranchers would remain unaware of the groups actions. However, the video shows that rangers discovered the activists, confronted them, and vowed to remove the water.

Concerned citizens had previously delivered fresh drinking water and troughs to the elk, only to have it taken away within days by NPS staff. The NPS’ refusal to provide water for these elk is a disturbing repeat of the similar “forced die-off”  that the agency created in the California drought of 2013-2014, which killed around half of the nation’s largest herd of 540 Tule elk. It has taken years for the herd to recover to just 420 individuals today.

This year, the NPS not only refused to act again but deliberately removed water from hundreds of animals trapped in the unnatural elk reserve enclosure. The needless suffering and deaths of the elk are among the numerous, egregious, anti-wildlife, and pro-industry policies that park rangers are required to enforce at the Seashore. 

Currently, over a third of the Point Reyes Park’s so-called “wilderness area” is occupied by modern industrial animal businesses which supply beef and milk to brands including Clover Sonoma, Straus Family Creamery, Nicasio Valley Cheese Company, and Cowgirl Creamery.