BigHornRam
Well-known member
If we applied the 3 Fools logic here, the Montana Bison Hunt should be dead in the water.
Comments show limited support for bison hunt
Posted on July 31
By BECKY BOHRER of the Associated Press
BILLINGS - The majority of people who commented on a plan to continue Montana's controversial hunting of bison that leave Yellowstone National Park say they oppose the idea and believe the practice should be stopped or changed.
The state Fish, Wildlife and Parks Commission is expected to decide Thursday whether the hunt goes on. The panel is set to act on a plan that would double the number of licenses available to hunters for last season's hunt, the first in the state in 15 years. The plan calls for allowing up to 100 bison to be killed over three months.
At least 68 of the 77 comments received by the Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks opposed the plan or called for changes in the way the hunt is conducted, a review of comments provided by the department shows.
Many of the comments were from out of state, from places such as Florida, New York, California, even the Netherlands. Several had similar wording.
Eight comments, including one from the Greater Yellowstone Coalition, a conservation group, supported the plan, though several also urged wildlife officials to increase the number of available licenses. At least five of those commenting were from Montana.
The remaining comment focused on a state-federal research project involving young bison from Yellowstone.
The total number of comments compares with the 299 that department spokeswoman Mel Frost said were submitted last year, before the wildlife commission decided to reinstate a hunt and allow up to 50 bison to be killed.
The agency received many form-letter comments last year, Frost said. She did not have a break down of the number for or against the hunt then.
The number of people who opposed the hunt this year should speak volumes to decision makers, said Dan Brister, a spokesman for the activist Buffalo Field Campaign. Brister said his group encouraged people to submit comments but didn't send out form letters.
But Ron Aasheim, administrator of Fish, Wildlife and Park's communication-education division, said the issue is not one driven by majority rule and won't be decided on the weight of public comments alone.
"The fact is, we've got to look as some solutions down there," he said. Aasheim said he didn't believe any of the comments received raised new issues.
Bison management has been a controversial issue for years, largely because of brucellosis, a disease found in the Yellowstone bison herd.
Many ranchers and livestock industry leaders worry that bison that leave the park in winter to look for food in Montana could spread the disease to cattle in the state, putting into jeopardy the state's prized brucellosis-free status and possibly leading to trade sanctions.
A government plan allows for wandering bison to be hazed, captured or sent to slaughter in an effort to reduce the potential for disease transmission. State wildlife officials see hunting as another management tool.
Park officials in March estimated the bison population at 3,500, above the management plan's target of 3,000. A new estimate is expected in a few weeks.
Some people, like Bill Nolan of Missoula, said 100 hunting licenses is too few and that the hunt should be expanded. Many others disagreed _ some, in harsh language. One e-mail comment, from a woman in Mississippi, was sent with the subject line "Disgraceful." Another said Montana was becoming known as "the killing fields of America."
Susan and Lee Eakins of Missoula wrote in their comments that they and others, who view Yellowstone bison as Western icons, "are disgusted by the behavior of this state."
Nolan cited as one reason for his support of an expanded hunt the number of bison killed last winter under the management plan. Nearly 900 bison were sent to slaughter last winter under terms of the plan. Forty bison were killed as part of the state-run hunt.
"Many hunters and non-hunters would love to have a freezer full of bison, and then we don't have to spend more taxpayer money to have the state deal with the bison leaving the park," he wrote.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Comments show limited support for bison hunt
Posted on July 31
By BECKY BOHRER of the Associated Press
BILLINGS - The majority of people who commented on a plan to continue Montana's controversial hunting of bison that leave Yellowstone National Park say they oppose the idea and believe the practice should be stopped or changed.
The state Fish, Wildlife and Parks Commission is expected to decide Thursday whether the hunt goes on. The panel is set to act on a plan that would double the number of licenses available to hunters for last season's hunt, the first in the state in 15 years. The plan calls for allowing up to 100 bison to be killed over three months.
At least 68 of the 77 comments received by the Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks opposed the plan or called for changes in the way the hunt is conducted, a review of comments provided by the department shows.
Many of the comments were from out of state, from places such as Florida, New York, California, even the Netherlands. Several had similar wording.
Eight comments, including one from the Greater Yellowstone Coalition, a conservation group, supported the plan, though several also urged wildlife officials to increase the number of available licenses. At least five of those commenting were from Montana.
The remaining comment focused on a state-federal research project involving young bison from Yellowstone.
The total number of comments compares with the 299 that department spokeswoman Mel Frost said were submitted last year, before the wildlife commission decided to reinstate a hunt and allow up to 50 bison to be killed.
The agency received many form-letter comments last year, Frost said. She did not have a break down of the number for or against the hunt then.
The number of people who opposed the hunt this year should speak volumes to decision makers, said Dan Brister, a spokesman for the activist Buffalo Field Campaign. Brister said his group encouraged people to submit comments but didn't send out form letters.
But Ron Aasheim, administrator of Fish, Wildlife and Park's communication-education division, said the issue is not one driven by majority rule and won't be decided on the weight of public comments alone.
"The fact is, we've got to look as some solutions down there," he said. Aasheim said he didn't believe any of the comments received raised new issues.
Bison management has been a controversial issue for years, largely because of brucellosis, a disease found in the Yellowstone bison herd.
Many ranchers and livestock industry leaders worry that bison that leave the park in winter to look for food in Montana could spread the disease to cattle in the state, putting into jeopardy the state's prized brucellosis-free status and possibly leading to trade sanctions.
A government plan allows for wandering bison to be hazed, captured or sent to slaughter in an effort to reduce the potential for disease transmission. State wildlife officials see hunting as another management tool.
Park officials in March estimated the bison population at 3,500, above the management plan's target of 3,000. A new estimate is expected in a few weeks.
Some people, like Bill Nolan of Missoula, said 100 hunting licenses is too few and that the hunt should be expanded. Many others disagreed _ some, in harsh language. One e-mail comment, from a woman in Mississippi, was sent with the subject line "Disgraceful." Another said Montana was becoming known as "the killing fields of America."
Susan and Lee Eakins of Missoula wrote in their comments that they and others, who view Yellowstone bison as Western icons, "are disgusted by the behavior of this state."
Nolan cited as one reason for his support of an expanded hunt the number of bison killed last winter under the management plan. Nearly 900 bison were sent to slaughter last winter under terms of the plan. Forty bison were killed as part of the state-run hunt.
"Many hunters and non-hunters would love to have a freezer full of bison, and then we don't have to spend more taxpayer money to have the state deal with the bison leaving the park," he wrote.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
