Assessment of the Potential for Bison Introduction and Grazing in McCarthy's Marsh

The Bureau of Land Management’s Northwest Management Framework Plan (1982), which covered management of public lands on the Seward Peninsula, did not address herding domestic animals other than reindeer. However, local residents have also considered herding American bison (Bison bison) in the region. The BLM initiated this study of McCarthy's Marsh to obtain information for new planning efforts and to prepare for potential permit applications. The Kobuk-Seward Peninsula Proposed Resource Management Plan and Final Environmental Impact Statement (2007) incorporates the study’s results; the new plan, which upon finalization will replace the management framework plan, limits commercial grazing on BLM-managed public lands to reindeer (Rangifer tarandus).