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ALERT: WRC’s sudden rush for power to close game lands to dog hunting!
ALERT: WRC’s sudden rush for power to close game lands to dog hunting!
On Wednesday, 4/16/14, the NC Wildlife Resources Commission posted a news release on their website announcing a public hearing on Tuesday, April 22 at 7:00 pm (mere 6 day notice). We urge you to attend & alert dog clubs to send representatives. We object to this dangerous rule, which provides an easy avenue to senseless restriction on hunting with dogs. Potential for abuse is enormous. Following is actual text of Notice of Hearing: “The N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission will hold a public hearing on April 22 at its headquarters in Raleigh to accept public comments on a proposed temporary rule change authorizing the Commission to establish still hunting zones on game lands. Under the proposed rule, the use of dogs for taking deer and bear will be prohibited on portions of game land posted as “Still Hunting Zone.” This new game land designation will provide an additional mechanism for addressing trespass and safety concerns of adjacent private landowners. Text of the proposed temporary rule may be viewed on the Office of Administrative Hearings website at http://www.ncoah.com/rules/. Before the Commission can post a Still Hunting Zone, the proposed rule requires the agency to conduct a public meeting in the area where the game land is located and requires presentation of public comments at an official Commission meeting for final determination. If approved, the proposed temporary rule change will take effect July 1, 2014, enabling the Commission to schedule public meetings about establishing potential Still Hunting Zones in respective game lands. The temporary rule will remain effective for up to 270 days, during which time the Commission will pursue an identical permanent rule. The public hearing will begin at 7 p.m. in the Auditorium Room 118 located on the 1st floor of the Wildlife Resources Commission headquarters at 1751 Varsity Drive on the Centennial Campus of N.C. State University in Raleigh. Comments also may be submitted between April 16 and May 9, 2014, to regulations@ncwildlife.org or Kate Pipkin, 1722 Mail Service Center, Raleigh, N.C. 27699-1722.
“Concerns of adjacent landowners” is a dangerous and subjective criterion that can be manipulated and used to stop dog hunting. We are working with the Louisiana Sportsmen Alliance to salvage dog hunting in a national forest where “adjacent land owner complaints” formed the basis of a federal administrative ban of dog hunting. It turns out it was only one adjacent land owner, possibly senile, who called repeatedly and objected to any use of forest lands close to his property. Anti-dog hunting federal bureaucrats used the “concerns of adjacent landowners” to stop dog hunting in an entire national forest in Louisiana. We are concerned that prejudiced North Carolina bureaucrats would employ similar tactics to stop dog hunting in NC game lands.
We need your help to fight for the right to hunt with dogs on NC gamelands. Attend this meeting, email your comments, or mail your comments to the address listed. Support us as we fight. Join the NC Sporting Dog Association www.ncsportingdog.org. Remind your Club to rejoin and urge your fellow hunters to join today. Send this email to other dog hunters who do not yet receive our emails. Thank you! See you in Raleigh on Tuesday, 4/22/14. Best regards, Joe & Henri McClees