SPOKANE, Wash. (AP) — The federal government is scrapping plans to reintroduce grizzly bears to the North Cascades ecosystem.

U.S. Secretary of the Interior David L. Bernhardt told a meeting of community members in Omak, Washington, on Tuesday that his agency will not conduct the environmental impact statement needed to move forward.

Bernhardt says grizzly bears are not in danger of extinction, and the Department of the Interior will focus on managing healthy grizzly bear populations across their existing range.

The department began planning the environmental review process in 2015 under the Obama administration.

The environmental group Conservation Northwest says it is disappointed in the decision.

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