July 2007

Beginning later this month, management of national wildlife refuges will be guided by three new policies that have been developed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and state fish and wildlife agencies over the past six years, reports the Wildlife Management Institute.

These policies provide direction to assist the Service in carrying out the National Wildlife Refuge System Improvement Act of 1997 in coordination with state fish and wildlife agencies. Under this law, the mission of the Refuge System is "to administer a national network of lands and waters for the conservation...

Of Mice and Mountain Lions: The Adventures of a Wildlife Biologist (2004) is authored by my friend and colleague Ronnie Ridley George, currently the Deputy Director of the Wildlife Division for the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. It is an autobiographical work.

After a brief introduction to his early years on the family farm in northeastern Texas, the narrative leapfrogs Ron's college years at East Texas State University (B.S. degree). It also omits his service as a pilot in the U.S. Air Force, including a stint in Viet Nam during fateful 1968, although that era is...

The Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC) is currently reviewing the first public land-development project that would challenge the Tennessee Valley Authority's (TVA) new conservation-based public land-use policy, reports the Wildlife Management Institute.

The proposed "Campbell County Lighthouse Lodge and Convention Center" includes plans for the construction of a 77-room lodge and restaurant complex to be built on a ridgetop adjacent to Norris Dam and the 4,038-acre Norris Dam State Park. The development site lies on a parcel of land that TVA transferred,...

A June ruling by the Federal District Court of Idaho stopped implementation of new (2006) grazing regulations by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM), reports the Wildlife Management Institute.

The BLM, which manages grazing on nearly 160 million acres of public rangeland, with use authorized by approximately 18,000 permits and leases on about 20,600 allotments, claimed that the new regulations would improve grazing management and promote stability of ranching on public lands. To the contrary, U.S. District Judge B. Lynn Winmill harshly criticized the agency's process and...

A proposal being considered at the highest levels of the USDA's Farm Service Agency (FSA) to allow raking of pine straw for private economic gain on up to 1,780,000 acres enrolled in the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP). If adopted, the proposal would negatively impact wildlife, taxpayers and the program itself, reports the Wildlife Management Institute.

CRP pine plantations-most are loblolly pines that have been under contract nearly 20 years-long have been criticized for providing negligible wildlife habitat. In recent years, policy improvements have stimulated incremental...

"The status quo won't do," stated Wyoming Governor David Freudenthal in regard to efforts to conserve sage-grouse in the face of energy development, reports the Wildlife Management Institute. Freudenthal's comments were made to a group of ranchers, oil and gas producers, biologists, conservationists, and state and federal officials at a summit he convened late last month. He added, "We have a narrow window of opportunity to protect the grouse and prevent it from being listed as an endangered species. My hope is that we can formulate a more unified plan that will balance protection with...

The 73rd North American Wildlife and Natural Resources Conference in Phoenix, Arizona, will feature a full-day workshop on the development of a North American Hunting Heritage Action Plan. The workshop will take place on Tuesday, March 25, 2008.

The goals of the workshop are to provide a compelling case for the necessity of an unprecedented North American Hunting Heritage Action Plan to sustain hunting and wildlife management, engage agency and organization staff in the development of the Plan, and motivate individuals to provide leadership in implementing the Plan. The targeted...

Progress on the 2007 Farm Bill legislation continues even though the House Agriculture Committee was unable to adhere to the initial schedule for consideration, according to the Wildlife Management Institute. Committee Chair Collin Peterson had originally hoped that the Committee would complete deliberation and action on the bill prior to the July 4 recess. The Committee now is scheduled to start deliberations during the week of July 16.

As frequently happens, tight budgets and demands for additional funding for a wide variety of programs are complicating the Committee's job of...