Democratic Hunting under Attack in VT

From the Calidonian Record:

Vermont Lawmakers Save 'Pete The Moose'

Robin Smith
Staff Writer

Local lawmakers believe they have saved Peter the Moose, his "girlfriend" and all the other wild deer and moose in Doug Nelson's elk hunting preserve in Irasburg.

Sen. Bobby Starr, D-Essex-Orleans, announced Wednesday the House and Senate conference committees have approved the budget bill that addresses the status of the preserve and the wild animals in the 700-acre enclosure, including Pete.

Even if the budget itself is vetoed by Gov. James Douglas over conflicts with the Democratic legislative leaders on capital gains taxes, the language about the preserve isn't part of the conflict, Starr said, and it will stay intact.

"We are good to go," Starr said.

Preserve Has New Status

Pete and other moose and deer that are in the elk preserve were illegal because the preserve fell afoul of new Fish and Wildlife laws governing hunting facilities.

The law required Nelson to get a permit for elk hunting on the nine-year-old preserve, which was created before such laws existed.

However, the permit would not allow native animals such as moose and deer inside the enclosure for fear they would catch tuberculosis and chronic wasting disease from the elk and spread the diseases to the native wild deer and moose population.

Now, under the language in the budget bill, the elk preserve will no longer be under Fish and Wildlife jurisdiction but under the Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets, which already supervises captive deer herds. The hunting preserve becomes a game farm.


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Here is my comment on the story:


Wild animals are held in the public trust by our state government. 250 years of case law and 500 years of common law have been subverted by this change in the law. This legislation has given our deer and moose to Mr Nelson to shoot, market or sell for his own personal gain. The state gets nothing. Although the cynic in me suspects the politicians will get some good campaign donations.
This is the greatest attack on democratic hunting since we fought the British.  


Here is the full section that was put in the Appropriations bill in the last days of the session. Sources tell me that Fish and Wildlife was not consulted about the content or language.

Sec. E.702.1 TRANSFER OF REGULATORY OVERSIGHT AND

SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS FOR FACILITY AND HERD

MANAGEMENT

(a) The general assembly finds and declares that:

(1) Vermont has long recognized that the protection and management of

the state’s native cervidae population is in the interest of the public welfare.

 (2) An abundant, healthy deer herd is a primary goal of wildlife

management, and hunting is a time-honored Vermont tradition.

(3) Vermont’s captive cervidae herds are regulated as game farms under

authority of the secretary of agriculture, food and markets under chapter 102 of

Title 6 and the agency of agriculture, food and markets’ rules governing

captive cervidae.

(4) Captive cervidae herds provide economic benefit to Vermont in the

same manner as farms producing cattle, sheep, pigs, and other amenable

livestock.

(5) Tuberculosis is a transmissible disease that can infect species of both

the cervidae and bovidae families and is zoonotic. The family bovidae

includes cattle. The family cervidae include white-tailed deer, moose, and elk.

(6) Chronic wasting disease is a transmissible spongiform

encephalopathy that has been identified in both free-ranging and captive

cervidae populations in other parts of the United States, including New York

state.

(7) Tuberculosis can be transmitted in cervidae and bovidae by nose-tonose

contact and through the sharing of watering and feeding troughs. It is not

known exactly how chronic wasting disease is transmitted, but the most likely

route of transmission is nose-to-nose contact. The agency of agriculture, food

and markets’ rules governing captive cervidae contain provisions both for

managing herds that may be susceptible to chronic wasting disease and for

testing cervidae to monitor for the control of zoonotic diseases contagious to

livestock, including tuberculosis.

(8) The captive cervidae facility located in Irasburg manages a specialpurpose

herd established in 1994 within a 700-acre enclosure. At the time of

the enclosure, the 700 acres contained a small population of native cervidae

that currently falls outside the jurisdiction of the agency of agriculture, food

and markets.

(9) In order to align state regulatory oversight of the facility and balance

the state’s responsibility to protect and manage its native cervidae populations

with the economic benefit contributed by the 700-acre captive cervidae facility,

it is necessary to transfer to the agency of agriculture, food and markets full

jurisdiction and authority for regulatory oversight of the Irasburg facility and

full authority for herd management of the facility and all cervidae currently

contained within the 700-acre enclosure.

(b) Notwithstanding any law to the contrary, for the purposes of this

section, the term “cervidae” shall include all white-tailed deer and moose

currently entrapped in the Irasburg captive cervidae facility that contains a

special-purpose herd, as “special-purpose herd” is defined in the agency of

agriculture, food and markets’ rules governing captive cervidae.

(c) The Irasburg captive cervidae facility that contains a special-purpose

herd shall:

(1) Erect a secondary-perimeter fence inside the existing, primaryperimeter

fence sufficient to reduce the possibility of contact between native

cervidae and any cervidae within the facility. The secondary fencing shall be

approved by the secretary of agriculture, food and markets and shall be erected

no later October 1, 2010.

(2) Submit a written herd management plan for all cervidae, including

entrapped native cervidae, within the facility to the secretary of agriculture,

food and markets for approval. The plan shall:

(A) contain a specific disease surveillance component, acceptable to

the secretary of agriculture, food and markets, that presents at least 30 mature

native cervidae to the secretary of agriculture, food and markets for

tuberculosis and chronic wasting disease testing per year. For purposes of this

subdivision, “mature” means an animal older than 16 months of age;

(B) provide for the culling of antlerless native cervidae at a rate that

prevents the herd size from overpopulating the enclosed area. The culling

program shall include a provision to allow members of the Vermont National

Guard who did not participate in the Vermont regular deer or moose hunting

seasons and who were awarded or are eligible to receive a campaign ribbon for

Operation Iraqi Freedom or Operation Enduring Freedom to assist with the

cull; and

(C) be filed with the secretary of agriculture, food and markets no

later than August 1, 2010.

(3) Comply with all disease testing protocols established and required

by the secretary of agriculture, food and markets.

(4) Demonstrate by no later than September 1, 2010, substantial

compliance with the agency of agriculture, food and markets’ rules governing

captive cervidae.

(5) Remain in good regulatory standing with the secretary of agriculture,

food and markets.

(d) The secretary of agriculture, food and markets may grant a variance

from the agency of agriculture, food and markets’ rules for the design and

construction of the secondary-perimeter fence required under subdivision

(c)(1) of this section if the fence design proposed by the owner of the Irasburg

facility serves the underlying purpose of reducing the possibility of contact

between free-ranging native cervidae and any cervidae enclosed within the

facility. The secretary of agriculture, food and markets may grant variances to

other provisions of the agency of agriculture, food and markets’ rules

governing captive cervidae provided that the health and welfare of free-ranging

native cervidae are not compromised or put at risk.

(e) In order to ensure that the appropriate number of native cervidae are

provided to the secretary of agriculture, food and markets for disease

surveillance as required under subdivision (c)(2)(A) of this section and that the

facility is able to meet the cull rate required under subdivision (c)(2)(B) of this

section, the facility may harvest cervidae during a special season, if necessary.

Any special harvest shall be approved in advance by the secretary of

agriculture, food and markets after consultation with the commissioner of fish

and wildlife. Notice of approval for a special season shall be posted at least 10

days in advance of the season in the office of the town clerk of Irasburg.

(f) Any native cervidae discovered between the primary and secondary

fences at the Irasburg captive cervidae facility or any cervidae carcass

discovered within the Irasburg facility shall be immediately presented to the

secretary of agriculture, food and markets for disease surveillance.

(g) The secretary of agriculture, food and markets may enforce a failure to

comply with the requirements of this section under chapter 1 or 102 of Title 6.

(h) It shall be a violation of chapter 103 or 113 of Title 10 if a person

knowingly or intentionally entraps or allows a person to knowingly or

intentionally entrap a native cervidae within the Irasburg captive cervidae

facility.