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Show SOUTHERN UTAH NEWS 3 WEDNESDAY APRIL 28, 1995 Bog Game management in Utah 1996 and beyond By Sam Carpenter A meeting was held in Provo Utah on the 7th and 8th of April to make a management plan for all Big Game species. The meeting was called by Sportsmen for Fish and Wildlife (SWF) under president Don Peay, whom 5-ye- ar last year (through lobbying) raised over 10 million dollars for wildlife. Sportsmen from all areas of the state were invited and represented there were over a hundred in attendance. Speakers gave presentations on everything from lobbying to predator control to politics in general. Through the efforts of Don Peay and the SWF (over 5000 strong) it has been proposed by and through legislative backing, that the sportsmen need to get a unified management proposal together. After the plan is intact the Department of Wildlife Resources (DWR) will have to have some real justification in turning any of the recommendations down. The following topics were discussed and recommendations made. Wilderness: It was unanimous that we recommend (zero) no more wilderness. That it is against all objectives that concern wildlife and land use, and only benefits a few. It is felt that the people in local areas have been excellent stewards to the land and should make ail decisions concerning land use and development (where possible), not the government. Predators: It was discussed that this is one of the biggest problems in getting the deer herd back on track in Utah. To get the deer herd back we must first do something about predators. It is a fact are also encouraging an education program to insure the youth are properly educated on wildlife and hunting issues. Poaching: This is a major concern to all sportsmen and we are pushing to get very aggressive to put this to a halt. We want increased penalties and rewards. It is now possible for anyone who gets a conviction on the Paunsagaunt or Elk Ridge areas to receive a tag the following year, up to 10 percent of the tags will be made available. Trapping: It was recommended that there be no limits on the number of animals a person can trap, and that traps will be checked every 96 hours. No more jaw tag requirements. Guides: It was recommended unanimously that all guides be citations that are controversial or unfair. Example: A cougar hunter harvested his cougar on a holiday weekend (they must be checked in within 48 hours of harvest) when the DWR office was closed. He made numerous attempts to call the division office to get checked in, but it was a three day weekend. The hunter checked his cougar in on Tuesday (the first day DWR was open that week) and was cited for not checking in on time this is a true story. The cost to fight a ticket such as this is around $2000 for attorney fees alone. It is our hope that people in southern Utah will take an interest in game management issues in the future. Were up against a lot of opposition to maintain our right to hunt. It is hoped by next year SWF will have five paid lobbyists instead of the current one (Don Peay). The Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance currently has four or five that are working aggressively to take it all away from us anti-hunte- rs 801-485-409- 0. licensed. Elk Management: A) All spike areas will be closed to bull hunting one in every three years, during that year Cow Elk will be taken. This will allow the 1000 spikes that are usually taken to become branch antlered bulls. In one year this will allow more tags for the limited (trophy bull) entry hunts in the spike units. B) The elk hunt opening day be moved to the first week of November when the bull elk are out of the rut and much harder to find. This will hurt the success rate at first, but will allow more bulls to survive increasing the overall population of bulls. C) Split the hunt into two (5) day hunts. This will allow less hunters in the field at the same time reduce crowding and increasing opportunity. Deer Management: Free CENTURY 2 P Home Sellers Kit. would like to help support you through the A- )Putacapontagsalesat97,000. selling process. That's why were offering a been as high as 300,000 through the past several years. B) Break the state into 18 units instead of the currentfive units. It was recommended that the southern unit be broken into at least five units and limit the number of hunters in each unit. This will allow deer populations to increase over the next five years. C) Deer herds in Utah will be special Home Seller's Kit. The kit includes a video on preparing your home for sale, selling and moving guides, change of address cards and other practical items to When you 're selling help you get moving. scientifically managed. Current your home, its nice to know youve got a management is totally political, based on a budget with no regard to the number of deer or the health of the herds. Scientific management will require shoulder to lean on. Contact your participating DWR to do accurate counts and CENTURY 21 office or call today for more details. manage accordingly. D) Deer will no longer be hunted during the Rut. This will be state wide with the exception of the Paunsagaunt and Elk Ridge Units. DWR Accountability: DWR must be held accountable for all decisions. Violatiob Board: Form a board of sportsmen (one representative for each current Unit (5) to view and make recommendations on ' Right now your local CENTURY 21 office that some areas in Utah The current numberofhunters has have a doe to fawn ratio of 40 to 100. This means that 6 of every 10 fawns that are born are lost to predators, mainly the coyote. It was decided that the cougar and bear will be recommended to be classified as Big Game they are currently considered Small Game. It was also recommended and passed to put these species on a program that will lengthen the season to approximately 90 days for those who draw a tag to take their lion or bear. If by that time they have not done so, the tag will be sold on a first come, first served basis, but the quota of lions and bears will be taken regardless. The reason for this is are applying that for and drawing tags to keep the big cats from being taken. As a result the cougar population is getting out of hand. Youth Hunting Program: In the future hunters from age 14 to 18 (if our recommendation flies) will receive a license at a reduced rate and a percent of limited entry tags will be made available for them to draw. We with legislative decisions to benefit the privileged few. There will be another SWF meeting in July to finalize our proposal. If you have ideas, or are not pleased with these ideas, you need to let it be known. If you would like to be a part of the decision-makin- g process you can call If you would like to join our organization, you may join for $10 which you should send to: Sportsmen for Fish and Wildlife, 1174 South 300 West, Salt Lake City, Utah 84101. Frontier Realty 644-210- 0 good at participating offices while supplies last. This free offer does not obligate you to list your home with the CENTURY 21 system. If your home is currently listed, please disregard this offer. Equal Housing Opportunity. (Si EACH OFFICE IS INDEPENDENTLY OWNED AND OPERATED. Offer 0 1995 Your local CENTURY 21 subfranchise Division for the NAF. of Century 21 Real Estate Corporation. |