April NRC Preview

Written by MUCC Barnum Conservation Policy Fellow, Tess Bradley

Proposed deer regulations will be presented at the April Natural Resources Commission (NRC) meeting April 13.

The meeting will be held at 9:00 a.m. at Lansing Community College, 5708 Cornerstone Drive Lansing, MI 48917.

  Topics include deer, nuisance animals, budget discussions, the Pure Michigan Hunt, fisheries strategic planning and more. 

Chad Stewart and Amy Derosier from the Wildlife Committee will kick off the meeting with an overview of soon-to-be-proposed deer regulations and an update on chronic wasting disease (CWD) monitoring. 

The Pure Michigan Hunt winners will be on hand to be recognized by the director and NRC members. MUCC is a sponsor of the Pure Michigan Hunt and donated swag as part of the prize package. 

Newly-announced DNR Fisheries Division Chief Randy Claramunt will be present for the first time in his new role to review the fisheries strategic plan. Randy and outgoing fisheries chief Jim Dexter are overlapping duties until June to help the transition within the department.  

Brian Frawley from DNR Wildlife Division will give the preliminary deer harvest survey report. 

Acting Director Shannon Lott will be reviewing an oil and gas lease auction of 77,000 acres that is up for action this month. There are no new land transactions to review. 

Wildlife Conservation Order #6 will be up for information at the meeting. The order proposes changes that would give property owners more tools to help them remove nuisance wildlife that are causing or could cause property damage.

Wildlife Conservation Order #4 is up for action. The order gives the annual propsals for the 2023-24 migratory bird seasons from the United States Fish and Wildlife Service .

Wildlife Conservation Order #5 proposes allowing the tracking of legally shot game animals with off-lead dogs. The NRC is not expected to act on this order at the April meeting. MUCC testified in favor of the order at the March meeting but requested the requirement for GPS collars to be removed.

This past weekend, MUCC’s membership debated off-lead tracking again, ultimately voting to support with certain considerations.

MUCC will be streaming the meeting on our Facebook page as technology allows. 

To ensure our natural resources remain protected and managed thoughtfully and our outdoor heritage defended, join Michigan United Conservation Clubs today: http://bit.ly/JoinMUCC .  

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