NY DEC Announces Adoption of New Deer and Moose Feeding Regulation

Measure Prevents Unnecessary Feeding of Wild Deer to Prevent Spread of Disease and Other Negative Effects on Wildlife and Habitat

 

New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) Commissioner Basil Seggos announced the adoption of a regulation to reduce problems caused by wildlife feeding and establish strict procedures for the use of tick-control devices designed to treat deer. Prohibiting the feeding of wild deer and moose is a best management approach to reduce risks associated with communicable wildlife diseases like chronic wasting disease, minimize conflicts with deer, and protect wildlife habitat.

"Feeding deer and moose can artificially increase populations and change behavior, causing harm to people, wildlife, and the environment," Commissioner Seggos said. "These new requirements strike a necessary balance between preventing the negative effects of deer feeding while recognizing the increased public health threat posed by tick-borne diseases and make an exception to allow the use of certain devices designed to kill ticks on deer."

DEC first prohibited deer feeding in 2002 in response to the threat of Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) because concentrating deer or moose at feeding sites increases the risk of disease transmission. However, there are many other negative impacts associated with deer feeding that necessitate a broader regulation.

Following a public comment period earlier this year, DEC adopted the new regulation to provide a clearer definition of what does and does not constitute illegal feeding of deer or moose. For example, the requirements provide exemptions for wildlife plantings, bona fide agricultural practices, livestock husbandry, and research and nuisance abatement actions permitted by DEC. It clarifies that incidental feeding such as the attraction of deer or moose to a birdfeeder will only be considered a violation if DEC has previously issued a written warning to the person responsible for the incidental feeding. This will allow nuisance situations to be appropriately addressed without limiting bird feeding in general.

To reduce the sale and marketing of products that are illegal to use and to protect consumers from being misled, the new regulation requires retail products packaged for sale as food or edible attractants for wild deer or moose to carry a label clearly stating that such use is illegal in New York.

The regulation also establishes procedures for the legal use of 4-PosterTM Tickicide and devices used to dispense it. 4-PosterTM Tickicide is a pesticide registered by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and DEC to kill ticks on deer. It is dispensed via four rollers, or "posts," attached to bait stations filled with corn. As deer eat the corn, the rollers deposit pesticide on their heads and necks.

In parts of New York with high tick-borne disease rates, there is considerable public interest in using these devices. The application procedures and permit issuance conditions specified in the new regulation are designed to allow such use while limiting negative impacts of deer feeding on the surrounding community and environment.
The full text of the new regulation is on the DEC website.

Floating plastics pervade Pacific fish populations, larval fish are eating our trash

 Researchers from Hawai‘i Pacific University, NOAA, and other agencies release study that includes evidence ‘fish are dominated by plastics’

A new study on the Pacific Ocean’s floating trash indicates not only a significant accumulation of microplastics in the Hawaiian Islands, but that larval fish are eating the debris. 

The research, conducted in partnership with Hawaiʻi Pacific University’s Center for Marine Debris Research (CMDR), centered on waters off the Kona coastline of Hawaiʻi Island. The area is found to accumulate microplastic pollution at a rate higher than the North Pacific Garbage Patch itself, and the larval fish living in this nursery habitat are eating the trash that surrounds them.

The findings are published in the journal, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) sampled surface waters near West Hawaiʻi using plankton tows with the intention of learning about the larval fish community in that nursery habitat.  It was no surprise that the researchers found young fish of many different types, including species that are gathered for commercial or recreational fisheries and that also play vital roles in ecosystems, such as Hawaiian coral reefs. 

“But we were shocked to find that so many of our samples were dominated by plastics,” said Jonathan Whitney, a marine ecologist for NOAA and co-lead of the study.  Within the slicks—small-scale convergence zones that look like ribbons of smooth water—plastic particles outnumbered larval fish seven to one. The concentration of plastic per square kilometer in the surface water slicks off of West Hawai‘i was eight times greater than in the North Pacific Garbage Patch. 

“The North Pacific Garbage Patch is known as one of the most plastic-polluted marine waters on earth. It is deeply concerning that concentrations in these hotspots in Hawai‘i exceed those in the Garbage Patch,” said Jennifer Lynch, research biologist with the National Institute of Standards and Technology and co-director of the HPU CMDR.

HPU’s CMDR determined the chemical composition of the plastic found in the tows, outside of the fish, to be mostly polyethylene and polypropylene. Next, the researchers dissected the digestive tracts of the tiny fish under a microscope.

 “We found tiny plastic pieces in the stomachs of commercially targeted pelagic species, including swordfish and mahi-mahi, as well as in coral reef species like triggerfish,” said Whitney.  Most of the particles were microfibers.

Lynch identified the chemical composition of the fibers to prove that they were man-made.  Two different types of chemical spectroscopy, Fourier-transform infrared and Raman, revealed that some were polyester, nylon, or rayon, and most were dyed cellulose, which could come from cotton fabric.

 “The fact that larval fish are surrounded by and ingesting non-nutritious toxin-laden plastics, at their most vulnerable life-history stage, is cause for alarm,” explained Jamison Gove, a research oceanographer for NOAA and co-lead of the study.

“The multiple, disturbing discoveries in this study spotlight the negative impact humans are having on our planet.  We can make changes to reduce our impact, and these changes are needed now,” said Lynch. 

The CMDR’s goal is to help eliminate plastic waste from the ocean, and the team is deeply committed to diving into this issue, right here in Hawaiʻi. The Center continues to strive to move conversations forward about creating a trash-free ocean environment while investigating the impacts of marine debris and distributing the knowledge of clean ocean awareness initiatives and stewardship.

The publication is titled “Prey-size plastics are invading larval fish nurseries” and is published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Pennsylvania DEP Announces Statewide Surveillance of Ticks

Five-year study to assess risk of tickborne illnesses in Pennsylvania

The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) announced that it is conducting a five-year environmental surveillance of ticks to assess the risk of tickborne illnesses across Pennsylvania. Funding for this project is being provided by the Pennsylvania Department of Health. 

 

The survey, which started in July 2018 in coordination with county governments, is part of the Pennsylvania Lyme Disease Task Force recommendations for combatting the growing incidence of Lyme and other tick-borne diseases. It is funded annually through the state budget.

 

“Lyme disease affects thousands of Pennsylvanians every year, but ticks are also known to carry other pathogens that could infect humans. This survey will provide important data that will help us better understand these arachnids in our environment and inform Pennsylvanians on how, when and where to avoid getting bitten by a disease-carrying tick,” said DEP Secretary Patrick McDonnell. “We want everyone to enjoy the outdoors and take the proper precautions to avoid contact with ticks, and we are proud to support the Lyme Disease Task Force’s efforts to protect Pennsylvanians.”

 

“Lyme disease is a major public health concern in Pennsylvania,” Secretary of Health Dr. Rachel Levine said. “Many people believe that Lyme disease, and the ticks that carry the disease, can only be found in wooded areas. However, I know personally, as do many others, that ticks can be found in your backyard, where you walk your dog, or the local park. These surveillance efforts will help us to share with all Pennsylvanians the importance of taking steps to protect yourself.” 

 

The survey is taking place in every county in Pennsylvania to track ticks’ habitats, life stages and peak activity levels and to test them for human pathogenic diseases. Additionally, 38 counties are conducting a specific survey of nymphal blacklegged (Ixodes scapularis) ticks, which can transmit Lyme Disease to humans.

 

Ticks are collected using white felt drags that sample low-lying ground cover and understory vegetation for questing ticks.

 

Fall and winter surveillance focused on analyzing adult blacklegged ticks for emerging and changing disease burdens in public use habitats across Pennsylvania, such as parks, playgrounds or recreational fields.

 

The spring and summer surveillance will focus on collecting three tick species: the blacklegged tick in its immature nymphal stage, when it most often infects humans with Lyme disease, as well as human babesiosis and human granulocytic anaplasmosis; the adult American dog (Dermacentor variabilis) tick, which transmits Rocky Mounted Spotted Fever and Tulameria; and adult lone star (Amblyomma americanum) tick, which transmits Ehrlichiosis and Tularmeria.

 

The nymphal stage of the blacklegged tick causes the most tickborne illness in Pennsylvania due to its size and activity period. It is significantly smaller — about the size of a poppy seed — than the adult and therefore less likely to be discovered on the human body. 

 

“The nymphal stage of the blacklegged tick’s lifespan overlaps with people enjoying the outdoors in the spring and summer,” McDonnell said. “Tracking and testing them at this stage is extremely important because it will allow us to more accurately pinpoint when and where risk of human illness is most prevalent and help prevent cases of Lyme disease in the future.”

 

Since July 1, 2018, DEP collected 3,663 adult black-legged ticks for testing.

PA FISH AND BOAT COMMISSION RECRUITING WATERWAYS CONSERVATION OFFICERS

The Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission (PFBC) is recruiting the 22nd class of Waterways Conservation Officer (WCO) Trainees at its H.R. Stackhouse School of Fishery Conservation and Watercraft Safety.

The State Civil Service Commission (SCSC) will begin accepting applications January 30 until February 19, 2019.

The class of up to 20 trainees is expected to report for training in the summer of 2019 and graduate in the summer of 2020. The most recent previous academy was held in 2015-2016.

Trainees will undergo an extensive 52-week training program encompassing all aspects of conservation law enforcement. Following civil service testing and selection, trainees will first complete a 22-week Municipal Police Officers Basic Training conducted by Pennsylvania State Police at its Northwest Training Center in Meadville, Crawford County. An additional 30 weeks of training is conducted at the Stackhouse school located in Bellefonte, Centre County and includes field training alongside seasoned WCOs. Trainees will assist with investigations, patrol regions, participate in public outreach events and stock waterways.

Applicants must meet the following basic criteria:

     • Pennsylvania residency
     • Possess a valid driver’s license
     • Be at least 21 years of age
     • High School Graduate or GED
     • Pass a criminal history background check

For more information on the position, visit the recruitment page on www.fishandboat.com.
Applications will only be accepted online. To view the announcement and apply, please visit the SCSC website on or after January 30, 2019 at: www.employment.pa.gov.

More Than $1.1 Billion for Sportsmen & Conservation

This revenue is generated by the Pittman-Robertson Wildlife Restoration and Dingell-Johnson Sport Fish Restoration (PRDJ) acts from excise taxes paid by the hunting, shooting, boating and angling industries on firearms, bows and ammunition and sport fishing tackle, some boat engines, and small engine fuel

The funds, which are distributed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, support critical state conservation and outdoor recreation projects. To date, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has distributed more than $20.2 billion in apportionments for state conservation and recreation projects.

You can find apportionment by individual states here:  https://wsfrprograms.fws.gov/Subpages/GrantPrograms/WR/WR_Funding.htm

 The recipient state wildlife agencies have matched these funds with approximately $6.7 billion throughout the years, primarily through hunting and fishing license revenues.

Army Corps announces Francis E. Walter Dam water release schedule

The U.S. Army Corps Engineers’ Philadelphia District released the Flow Management Plan for the Francis E.Walter Dam in White Haven, PA.  

The Francis E. Walter Dam

 
The multi-year plan is based upon past program performance as well as input received through stakeholders. In 2018, water will again be allocated to ensure whitewater releases from July to late August and fisheries releases from July to early September. Seasonal precipitation and water accumulation will be used for releases later in the season (late August through mid-October).
In 2018, planned dates (22) for fishing releases (target 400 cubic feet per second)* are:

•  March:   3, 4, 10, 11, 17, 18, 24, 25, 31   
•  April:     1, 7, 8, 14, 15, 21, 22, 28, 29
•  May:      5, 6, 13, 20
•  October:  as provided by end of year release around the weekend of 6-7 October

* Release will be set to match inflow with a target release up to 400 cfs.  Inflow will not be augmented by use of storage to satisfy the 400 cfs target.

In 2018, planned dates (24) for whitewater releases are listed below. All other dates during the recreation season, until the weekend of October 6-7 have a planned fisheries augmentation release of at least 50 cubic feet per second if sufficient water is available.

• May:             12, 19, 26, 27
• June:             9, 10, 23, 24
• July:              7, 8, 21, 22, 28, 29
• August:         4, 5, 11, 12, 18, 19, 25*, 26*
• September:    1*, 2*
• October: as provided by end of year releases around the weekend of 6-7 October

*Releases will depend on seasonal precipitation and water accumulation.

**The 6-7 October weekend release is intended to provide a means of releasing any excess water that may have accumulated during the recreation season.  This is the last added increment for the 2018 recreation plan.  Fisheries releases through the season will be accommodated before the final weekend (6-7 October) release will be considered.
 
In 2018, the Army Corps will hold a total of 22 fishing releases and 24 whitewater release dates (four of which are dependent on additional precipitation along with fisheries enhancement releases on all other days during the recreation season). All dates are dependent on hydrologic conditions and the absence of the need for flood control operations. View plan details, including 2019 and 2020 fishing release and whitewater release dates, here. 

Pennsylvania's Wildlife Conservation Officers Are Now Officially Game Wardens

For the first time in its 122-year history, the Pennsylvania Game Commission will call its law-enforcement officers “state game wardens.”

Effective on January 1, 2018 Pennsylvania will have game wardens. Not that they didn't before, they just called them something different.

“The job titles previously used to describe our field officers – game protector and wildlife conservation officer – didn’t fully identify their unique and diverse responsibilities,” explained Pennsylvania Game Commission Executive Director Bryan Burhans. “The goal here is to more clearly identify our officers and their purpose. We believe ‘state game warden’ will help communicate this.

“In addition, this title already is well understood by the public,” Burhans said. “The word ‘warden’ is America’s oldest title for the men and women who serve wildlife in this capacity.”

Since the recodification of the state’s Game and Wildlife Code in 1987, field officers were titled wildlife conservation officers. Prior to that, they were called district game protectors. But neither title resonated with the public. Many never associated them with Game Commission officers
.
Game wardens are known by many different titles depending upon the state wildlife agency for which they work. The titles reflect the varying sets of broad duties they fulfill. Most wardens share a basic duty to enforce the laws that regulate hunting, protect wildlife and the environment. However, their duties extend into education, research and a host of conservation programs.

For example, Pennsylvania game wardens coordinate and supervise Hunter-Trapper Education programs. They also represent the agency at conservation and sportsmen’s club meetings, respond to nuisance wildlife complaints, and deal with injured wildlife and suspected rabid-animal calls. Warden work also includes wildlife surveys, wildlife trap-and-transfer, field research and providing programs to civic groups and public schools.

“It was the variety of work, which has accompanied the position since game protectors were defined by law in 1895, that inspired the former titles our officers have had,” Burhans said.
While wildlife law-enforcement is a core responsibility, fulfillment of an officer’s full range of duties requires significant training and responsibility.

Burhans noted that the public often wonders what our game wardens do outside of the hunting season.

“There is no “off” season for our officers,” he said. “The breadth of responsibilities is what sets game wardens apart from other traditional law-enforcement professionals. Being a game warden requires a very unique person willing and able develop a diversity of skills in support of the agency.”
Burhans said renaming full-time agency officers ‘game wardens’ immediately will help the public know what these officers do.

It’s important to point out, though, that game wardens are sworn peace officers with statewide law-enforcement authority. They are highly trained and equipped as well as any police officer. They are expected to know and follow standards for protecting civil rights, gathering evidence that will hold up in court and prosecute violations of many different laws.

“As one of the most familiar faces of our agency, it is critical that that game wardens are recognized for who they are and what they do,” emphasized Burhans. “Anything less is unacceptable.”

Underwater Insects Aid Pennsylvania's DEP in Water Quality Checks

 Macroinvertebrates tell DEP researchers about water pollution and stream health

To the non fly angler they might be considered creepy, but they’re an excellent indicator of water quality– they’re the aquatic insects and animals that live in Pennsylvania’s rivers, lakes, and streams. The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) is for the first time visualizing benthic macroinvertebrate sampling results from across the state. The data is now publicly available in a GIS viewer with downloadable data sets for the first time as well.

Benthic macroinvertebrates are the insects and animals that spend most, if not all, of their lives underwater. They can be mayflies or midges, crayfish or clams, or one of many other underwater species, and are one of the most important parts of the food chain that fish, birds, and other animals depend on.

“Because they spend almost their entire lives in the water, benthic macroinvertebrates are especially attuned to water quality,” said Dustin Shull, Water Program Specialist for DEP. “They are an excellent way to gauge how healthy a particular section of stream or river is, and help DEP meet our obligations for monitoring water quality. This kind of biological assessment helps DEP see and assess long-term, cumulative effects of stressing factors on an ecosystem.”

Not all streams and rivers are created equal, and DEP has developed unique macroinvertebrate collection methods for freestone streams, limestone streams, and low-gradient streams. DEP uses these differing methods to get a complete picture of how many, what type, and how healthy the invertebrates are in any given habitat.

“DEP and partners have collected thousands of samples, and collect hundreds more every year to continue to deepen our knowledge base on the health of Pennsylvania’s waters,” said Shull.

See examples of the different streams types, the methods used to sample them, and results of the sampling by visiting Looking Below the Surface, DEP’s interactive story map on benthic macroinvertebrates.

“This type of research is vital to decision-making that goes on at DEP,” said DEP Secretary Patrick McDonnell. “We use the data collected and analyzed by program staff when we’re looking at how to clean up watersheds and improve water quality in backyards and communities across Pennsylvania. And we want to make sure that Pennsylvania residents can see the data we’re collecting, so they can know more about what is happening in their own area.”

To learn more about benthic macroinvertebrates, sampling, and water quality, please visit http://www.depgis.state.pa.us/macroinvertebrate/index.html

To retrieve sampling data, please visit http://www.depgis.state.pa.us/macroviewer/index.html

New Jersey Becomes the 47th State to Join The Interstate Wildlife Violator Compact

The New Jersey Division of Fish and Wildlife will have a new tool to use in its ongoing efforts to enforce wildlife laws as the state joins the Interstate Wildlife Violator Compact, Department of Environmental Protection Commissioner Bob Martin announced today.

The compact, first developed in western states in the mid-1980s, recognizes the importance of deterrence through the suspension of hunting, fishing, and trapping licenses and privileges in all member states resulting from violations concerning the pursuit, possession or taking of a wide range of wildlife, including mammals, birds, fish, reptiles, amphibians, mollusks, shellfish, and crustaceans. New Jersey’s membership will begin on December 1.

“This cooperative and proactive interstate strategy will greatly enhance our Division of Fish and Wildlife’s ability to protect and manage our wildlife resources,” said Commissioner Martin. “Any person who has their license privileges suspended in one member state may now also have them suspended in all other member states. In addition, the compact prevents convicted poachers who are under revocation in one state from hunting, fishing, or trapping in other states.”

For the purposes of the compact, the term “license” means any license, permit, or other public document which conveys to the person to whom it was issued the privilege of pursuing, possessing, or taking any wildlife regulated by statute, law, regulation, ordinance, or administrative rule of a participating state.

In New Jersey this definition includes but is not limited to: all-around sportsman, firearm hunting, trapping, bow and arrow, freshwater fishing, recreational crab pot, non-commercial crab dredge and shellfish licenses, various hunting and trapping permits, pheasant & quail and New Jersey waterfowl stamps, striped bass bonus tags, and saltwater registry certificates.

License and privilege suspensions resulting from wildlife violations committed on or after December 1, 2017 in New Jersey may result in the reciprocal suspension of license privileges in member states.  If a person plans to hunt, fish, or trap in another state, and has a license privilege suspension in New Jersey, it is their responsibility to contact the other state to verify if they may legally hunt, fish, or trap there.

New Jersey residents who fail to comply with the terms of a citation or summons issued for a wildlife violation in another member state may face a $50 fine and the suspension of all privileges to take or possess wildlife in New Jersey until the citation has been satisfied. Failing to appear in court or to otherwise answer a ticket or summons issued for such violations will also result in license, permit, and privilege suspension.

“Our agency has been charged with managing New Jersey’s wildlife resources for 125 years and we take this responsibility very seriously,” said Division of Fish and Wildlife Director Larry Herrighty. “Joining the compact protects New Jersey’s wildlife resources and that of member states by deterring violators from continuing their illegal activities and sends a clear message to all that such behavior will not be tolerated.”
 
The concept of a wildlife violator compact was first advanced in the early 1980s by member states in the Western Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies. In 1985 draft compacts were developed independently in Colorado and Nevada. Subsequently, these drafts were merged and the Interstate Wildlife Violator Compact was created.

More information on the Compact, including which states are members and which violations with prescribed suspensions will be recognized in New Jersey and shared with member states is available on the Division of Fish and Wildlife website at: www.njfishandwildlife.com/violators_compact.htm

New York DEC Announce $50,000 to Study Livingston Manor Flooding

Flood Study Could Help Advance Resiliency Projects

New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) Commissioner Basil Seggos announced that the State will provide up to $50,000 for a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers study in the Sullivan County hamlet of Livingston Manor. Funds will be used to undertake the Livingston Manor Flood Control Feasibility Study. The funding was secured with assistance from Assemblywoman Aileen Gunther.

"As climate change fuels more intense and frequent storms that threaten communities and infrastructure across the state, DEC experts are on the frontlines everyday assisting local governments in planning for and advancing important flood resiliency projects," said DEC Commissioner Basil Seggos. "The Livingston Manor Flood Control Feasibility Study will not only protect this community, it will also improve the natural resources in the Catskills, which are critical to the economic vitality of the region."

"The people who live in Livingston Manor have worked so hard to rebuild and repair flood damage time and time again," Assemblywoman Gunther said. "This study will help find a solution that works for everyone."

"It is with great satisfaction and anticipation that we have been waiting for such needed support from our state agencies. I can't say enough about our Assembly Women Aileen Gunther, who has witnessed first-hand, the devastation of flooding to our communities. Time and time again. We have been working with the ACOE and the DEC for some time now to develop a plan to reduce flooding in our area. Our small town atmosphere is a driving force for many new businesses, and the assistance from our state agency will help bring about positive change, and continued growth for those who look for a more healthy lifestyle and quality of life," said Rob Eggleton, Supervisor, town of Rockland.

A joint effort by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, DEC, the town of Rockland, the Livingston Manor Flood Control Feasibility Study was originally initiated in 2009. In 2016, the study was re-envisioned to focus solely on flood control, which required additional funding. In October 2017, DEC committed to providing up to $50,000 to finalize the study.

DEC is currently working with the U.S. Army Corps to finalize a contract for the project. The study is anticipated to be completed in 2018. Following completion of the study, the U.S. Army Corps will begin the design and construction phase of the project with federal, State and local funding.