January 21, 2011 NCWRC Update

Reminder of New Rulemaking Cycle and Public Hearings Schedule

To ensure timely adoption of rules and better serve constituents, adjustments were made last year to the process for review of inland fishing and hunting regulation proposals. The timeframe for public hearings and receiving comments was changed from January to September.

The September public hearings schedule and locations will be available in July and distributed through statewide media outlets, this e-newsletter, and posted at www.ncwildlife.org.

Wildlife Commission Reaffirms Support for Hunting with Dogs

The Commissioners of the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission unanimously adopted a resolution on Jan. 13 reaffirming their longstanding support for hunting with the use of dogs. The partnership of hunters and hunting dogs, commissioners affirmed, has long been a central thread of North Carolina hunting culture, and enjoyed by thousands of hunters. See the resolution and news release on our website.

Wildlife Commission Approves Emergency Powers Proposal

At their business meeting last Thursday, Commissioners approved a proposed regulation granting the agency’s executive director the authority to implement an emergency response in the event of a wildlife disease outbreak that threatens irreparable injury to wildlife or the public.

The regulation, which goes into effect March 1, implements the emergency powers authorized by the General Assembly and written into state statute. The plan would be effective for 90 days following the Commission’s determination that a disease outbreak has occurred, unless a temporary rule is adopted within that time to continue the provisions in the emergency plan.

Help Conserve Wildlife; Check Line 30 on State Income Tax Form

Check line No. 30 on your North Carolina state income tax form this year and help conserve freshwater mussels and fish, songbirds, amphibians, and other nongame species whose conservation is not supported by hunting and fishing license sales and excise taxes.

The Commission uses tax-check off donations to the Nongame and Endangered Wildlife Fund to support nongame wildlife research, conservation and management, such as monitoring the population of  Bachman’s sparrows and bald eagles, managing habitat to benefit ephemeral pool-breeding amphibians like gopher frogs and mole salamanders,conducting research and surveys for rare fishes and freshwater mussels, and developing the North Carolina Birding Trail.

New Leadership for Wildlife Officers

Retirements and promotions have brought some changes to the Division of Law Enforcement, whose wildlife officers enforce the state’s inland fishing, hunting and boating regulations.

Maj. Keith Templeton, supervisor for field operations, retired Jan. 1 and Jack Staley, previously captain for District 5, has taken over that post. Staley will supervise a statewide hierarchy of some 200 uniformed wildlife officers.

Maj. David Stokes, supervisor for administration, is retiring Feb.1 and will be replaced by Capt. Chris Huebner, state coordinator for hunting safety and boating safety, who will fill that position. Huebner will direct and coordinate administrative functions for law enforcement and oversee statutory duties.

Nominations for Thomas L. Quay Wildlife Diversity Award Close Jan. 31

If you know someone who is considered a leader in wildlife resources conservation and who has made outstanding contributions to wildlife diversity in North Carolina, you can nominate that person for one of the Commission’s most prestigious honors, the Thomas L. Quay Wildlife Diversity Award. Submit a nomination form and a detailed explanation of the nominee’s contributions to wildlife conservation by Jan. 31. The winner will be announced at the Commissioners’ July meeting.

For more information, go to http://www.ncwildlife.org.

January 19, 2011 NC Camo Update

Stop the Slaughter of our Striped Bass Resource.  Take Action!

The commercial harvest of striped bass in the Atlantic Ocean off North Carolina beaches is underway.  The Total Allowable Catch is 480,000 pounds, but many more fish are being killed as by catch.  The commercial fishing trawlers are limited to 50 fish per day but their gear catches and kills many times the number allowed in possession.   So, the commercial fishermen cull the largest fish for their catch and discard the remaining fish.

Look at this video story taken this month showing the huge loss of striped bass to this wasteful harvest process.  This practice is the epitome of poor management of this valuable resource.  We must do better.  Click here for video.

Take action and send a message to Rob Bizzell, Chairman of the Marine Fisheries Commission, and Louis Daniel, Director of the Division of Marine Fisheries.  Tell these officials that the waste is unacceptable and demand that this practice be stopped immediately and changes made to commercial fishing practices so that the waste does not occur again.  It is unacceptable to waste so many fish of such great value for such a paltry return for so few.

NC Camo Coalition is a project of the NC Wildlife Federation.

December 13, 2010 Relaying a neat post

I received this my in box today and thought I'd pass it along.
 
Man Minute by Jason Cruise

"November 4th the Lord added to the roster of Team Cruise by bringing us our second son, Tucker.

I'm forever amazed at how, through the birth of a child, a parent can instantly love someone so deep, so fast, and so full. It is a kind of love that must be experienced first person in order to be understood, and even then it is unexplainable.

It wasn't until I became a dad that I finally understood what it meant to be ready and fully able to give my life for another person. I would gladly exchange my life to insure that my two sons could keep theirs. Yet, in that same moment, I cannot find any reason to give either of my two sons lives for someone else. You can take me, my possessions, my money. Take whatever you want, but you cannot have my boys. Call me unloving, call me less than a Christian, call me whatever you want to call me. No person's life is worthy the death of either of my two sons.

My mind drifts to a night years ago when a mama held a baby in her arms, while a guy, just like me, looked on in speechless amazement. Thirty-three years later that same mom and dad would look in amazed disbelief watching just a few yards away as blood flowed out of His body, the same body that they once held in their arms. No pain is so great as that of watching your kids hurt from being injured. I cannot relate to the feeling Joseph must have felt standing there on the dirt of Calvary's hill. I cannot relate to the feelings going through the heart of God as He watched Jesus gasp for breath, all the while knowing that it was the both of them that blew breath into Adam. 

That night in the manger, the Heavenly Father, present there in the barn along with Joseph, knew the outcome for this pretty little baby boy. The Heavenly Father knew He would have to give up His boy if the whole world were to have access to forgiveness, for "without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins."

It is love I do not understand, for the raw truth is that I am sure I would have let the whole sin-sick world suffer in order to save Cole or Tucker. To give His son is love of the deepest root, planted in the heart of a God who knew there was no other way.
 
I stand amazed in the presence."

To receive the Man Minute email go to http://www.jasoncruisespeaks.com/

October 30,2010 Haul

My in-laws came for a visit and surprised me with some spectacular loot!  It's been a long time since I was able to read some of my favorite outdoor magazines.  It took me about 30 minutes to read the first 10 pages of Deer & Deer Hunting.  At this rate I should be good for the next 6 months.

NATIONAL HUNTING & FISHING DAY

In association with the National Hunting and Fishing Day the North Carolina Wildlife Resource Commission is sponsoring a special day in honor of NC's fishing and hunting heritage.  The event will "provide opportunities to connect with nature, test outdoor skills and learn about wildlife conservation through exhibits and demonstrations, many of which are interactive and hands on."

For more information visit the NCWRC webpage.