Georgia

Georgia DNR Accepting Public Comment on Grant to Increase Public Access

Expanding and enhancing public access to Wildlife Management areas is a priority for the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, Wildlife Resources Division (WRD). A grant received by WRD will assist with this priority, but first the agency is seeking public comment for a required environmental assessment prior to the funds being awarded.

The grant is through the Voluntary Public Access-Habitat Incentive Program of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Farm Service Agency. Using the existing Wildlife Management Area (WMA) program as a model, WRD’s grant proposal will provide new public hunting and fishing opportunities through participating landowners.

“Our goal is to enroll an additional 15,000 WMA acres as well as add 1,000 to 1,200 acres of dove fields,” says Alex Coley, assistant chief of Game Management. “Participating landowners will benefit from improved wildlife habitat through technical guidance, management recommendations and habitat development from WRD personnel.”

The state currently leases more than 120,000 acres of WMAs and dove fields for the current public access program. This grant would expand this acreage by providing more than $300,000 for the next three years.

Also allowable may be recreational activities that are compatible with hunting and fishing. These include bird watching, hiking, nature observation and canoeing as well as possibly mountain biking and horseback riding. These activities will be negotiated in the individual landowner agreements.

Wildlife Resources will evaluate potential lands for appropriate habitat and accessibility. These lands will receive promotion in the official Georgia Hunting Seasons & Regulations guide and through media outreach.

A portion of the grant provides coordination for private landowners to offer public hunting, fishing and other outdoor recreation opportunities on their land -- without being added to the WMA system. These public offerings could be targeted to specific groups such as youth, people with disabilities, or other special audiences, as directed by the donor or the agency.

WRD conducted a Programmatic Environmental Assessment (PEA) as part of the grant process. The public is encouraged to review the PEA and the full proposal, then provide comments. Comments will be accepted through April 14, 2012.

You can find the proposal, PEA and how to comment at www.georgiawildlife.com/node/2892 .

Woodlawn Elementary Wins Georgia-NASP Regional #4

Woodlawn Elementary School, the defending national champions in the elementary division, took top shooting honors at the fourth of five regional archery tournaments Saturday in Chatsworth.

Woodlawn Elementary shot a team score of 3,263, topping seven other competing schools for the overall highest-scoring team honors at Georgia-NASP Regional No. 4 at Woodlawn Elementary School.

Woodlawn captured the elementary division title to automatically qualify for the 6th annual Georgia-NASP State Tournament March 21 at the Georgia National Fairgrounds in Perry.

Woodlawn’s Alyssa Laviana took home highest-scoring female honors with a score of 285 (out of 300). Morgan County Middle School’s Jackson Mitchell won the highest-scoring male award with a score of 281.

Bagley Middle School in Chatsworth was the middle school division champion with a team score of 3,193, just beating out Morgan County Middle School’s 3,125. Southeast Whitfield High School won the high school team division with a 2,646. Bagley Middle and Southeast Whitfield received an automatic bid to the state tournament in March.

Other top shooters included: Woodlawn Elementary, Tucker Hemphill (280, top elementary school male); Bagley Middle, Haley Bagley (282, top middle school female); Southeast Whitfield High, Alley Pilcher (222, top high school female); Southeast Whitfield, Matt Cloer (246, top high school male).

More than 170 students in elementary, middle and high school competed at Regional No. 4. Schools that did not win an automatic berth to state at the regional tournament can still be selected as a high-scoring wildcard team after the final regional tournament is completed in late February.

MORE ABOUT NASP

The National Archery in the Schools Program is an in-school archery curriculum that meets all education department standards. Only schools that are certified in NASP through the Georgia Department of Natural Resources are qualified to compete in the Georgia Tournament. Schools in nearly 80 counties in Georgia are NASP certified.
The program promotes instruction in international-style target archery to improve educational performance and participation in shooting sports. Research has shown that the program, administered through a minimum two-week course during the school year, improves class attendance and behavior. NASP universal fit bows make it possible for students of all sizes and genders to succeed in archery while raising self-esteem levels and improving hand-eye coordination during physical activity.

NASP is taught in 48 states as well as six countries. To date, more than nine million students have gone through the program.

For more information on NASP in Georgia, recreational shooting sports opportunities or to find a range near you, visit www.georgiawildlife.com, contact a local WRD Game Management Office or call (770) 918-6416.

75 Years of Wildlife Conservation and Partnership Success

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) joins the Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies (AFWA), and other partners at the 2012 SHOT-SHOW to announce the start of a yearlong celebration of the 75th anniversary of the Wildlife and Sport Fish Restoration Program (WSFR), one of the most significant and successful partnership approaches to fish and wildlife conservation in U.S. history.

The “WSFR 75 – It’s Your Nature” celebration brings together federal and state fish and wildlife agencies; the hunting, shooting, angling, and boating industries; and conservation groups to mark a milestone of partnership success that has led to 75 years of quality hunting, fishing, shooting, boating and wildlife-related recreation. The occasion also marks the beginning of a new era in wildlife conservation, during which the partners will establish new goals for fostering and maintaining partnerships to continue conservation and outdoor recreation into the next 75 years and beyond.

“The Service is proud to join our partners in recognizing more than seven decades of wildlife conservation and quality outdoor recreational opportunities,” said Director Dan Ashe of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. “With our nation’s support and our partnership’s renewed commitment, WSFR will help more Americans enjoy wildlife and our great outdoors for many years to come.”

Through the WSFR program, several innovative and foundational fish and wildlife conservation programs are administered. The first was created on September 2, 1937 when President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act, which raises funds through a dedicated excise tax on sporting guns and ammunition. In 1950, the Federal Aid in Sport Fish Restoration Act was enacted and added to the WSFR program. Through this law, funds are provided for fish conservation and boating and fishing recreational programs in each state through an excise tax placed on certain fishing and boating equipment and fuels.

“Since its 1937 inception, WSFR has provided more than $14 billion to support fish and wildlife restoration and management,” said Hannibal Bolton, the Service’s assistant director for the WSFR program. “The program and its partners, including the sporting arms industry, conservation groups, and sportsmen and sportswomen, are coming together for this anniversary to renew their commitment to conserve fish and wildlife and enhance hunter, angler, and boater recreation.”

These funds, administered by the Service, are combined with hunting license dollars in each state to fund important state wildlife conservation and hunting programs.

“The 75th anniversary of the WSFR program is a tremendous opportunity to celebrate the conservation victories that have been made possible because of this innovative funding approach,” said Jonathan Gassett, PhD, president, Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies. “WSFR has made the difference for the survival and abundance of some species, and because of it, many fish and wildlife populations are at historically high levels today.”

Industry and agency partnerships have helped to the successes of the WSFR program to become what it is today.

“The WSFR programs have not only supported fish and wildlife conservation, they have also supported small businesses that manufacture and sell hunting and fishing equipment,” said Myke Lynch, general manager of Green Top Sporting Goods in Richmond, Virginia. “The industry supporting sportsmen has a multi-million dollar impact on the nation’s economy, and it depends on healthy fish and wildlife populations.”

The WSFR 75th anniversarywill include participation in various fish and wildlife conservation events and conferences throughout the year, to culminate with National Hunting and Fishing Day in September 2012.

For more information about the WSFR program and its 75th Anniversary in 2012, visit:

· http://wsfrprograms.fws.gov/

· www.wsfr75.com

· Facebook: http:///www.facebook.com/WSFR75

· Twitter: www.twitter.com/wsfr75

The mission of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is working with others to conserve, protect, and enhance fish, wildlife, plants, and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people. We are both a leader and trusted partner in fish and wildlife conservation, known for our scientific excellence, stewardship of lands and natural resources, dedicated professionals, and commitment to public service. For more information on our work and the people who make it happen, visit www.fws.gov. Connect with our Facebook page at www.facebook.com/usfws, follow our tweets at www.twitter.com/usfwshq, watch our YouTube Channel at http://www.youtube.com/usfws and download photos from our Flickr page at http://www.flickr.com/photos/usfwshq

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