Elk fed amid concern about spread of chronic wasting disease

FILE - In this Feb. 21, 2017, file photo, elk make their way to the feed line on the National Elk Refuge north of Jackson, Wyo. Elk are being fed in the Greater Yellowstone area during the winter of 2020-21 amid concern that concentrating thousands of animals on feed could make it easier for chronic wasting disease to spread. (Ryan Dorgan/Jackson Hole News & Guide via AP, File)

JACKSON, Wyo. (AP) — Elk are being fed this winter in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem amid concern that concentrating thousands of animals on feed could exacerbate the spread of chronic wasting disease. The fatal disease was found in a cow elk shot in Grand Teton National Park earlier this month. Environmentalists and wildlife scientists have have long called for a halt to the feeding system out of concern for how feeding might accelerate spread of the brain-wasting disease. The Jackson Hole News & Guide reports federal and state agencies have either modestly adjusted operations or just started examining possible changes to curb disease transmission.