Post by Swamp Thing on Jun 14, 2005 10:02:30 GMT -5
This LONG but worth looking at!
ALBANY -- Sen. William Larkin owns three acres of property in New Windsor, Orange County, that he and his wife like to decorate with flowers.
At A Glance
Number of deer-vehicle collisions reported a year: 10,000 (approximate)
People killed in deer-vehicle accidents in 2004: 150
Top five counties for deer harvest last year:
* Steuben 11,571
* Cattaraugus: 10,658
* Allegany: 10,587
* St. Lawrence: 7,476 (including ME!-1 last week of Sept. on Rt. 11B)
* Chautauqua: 7,430
Source: State Department of Environmental Conservation
But more and more frequently, when they come out their door to look at the flowers, they find that the flowers have been eaten by deer.
Sometimes he sees "12 to 14 deer chomping down on the front lawn."
As the deer population in the state has swollen to an estimated 1 million and the hungry creatures have become fixtures in many suburban neighborhoods, the debate about how to control the growth has picked up steam.
The issue comes down to whether to expand the hunting season or figure out non-lethal ways to keep the deer herds at bay.
A bill sponsored by Larkin and Assemblyman William Magee, D-Nelson, Madison County, would create a task force to study the problem. The bill has passed both houses and is awaiting Gov. George E. Pataki's signature or veto.
Larkin is sponsoring another bill that has not been acted on in the Assembly that would expand the hunting season.
If Pataki approves, the task force will be composed of members from various state departments affected by the growing influx of deer: Health and Motor Vehicles.
"We wanted to create an issue-oriented project ... to get the departments to work together to mitigate the damage done by deer," said Larkin, a Republican.
"It's clear hunting deer isn't doing enough to control the population," said Magee spokesman Troy Waffner. "We needed to look at non-lethal ways to control the deer population."
Deer control has become increasingly difficult over the last 40 years, in part because deer habitats have grown. Hundreds of thousands of acres of former farmland that is abandoned have reverted to forest.
According to the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, last year hunters in Broome County took in 430 deer, while Tioga County hunters took in 4,734. In Chenango County they bagged 2,674. Exact figures for Delaware County were not available, but the DEC's calculated deer take for the county is 4,437.
According to the New York State Police, motor vehicle accidents in 2004 involving deer totaled 90 in Broome County, 26 in Tioga County, 49 in Chenango County and 61 accidents in Delaware County.
Legislators estimate that deer cost farmers $59 million a year and insurance companies $20 million in claims from vehicle-deer collisions.
Currently, the Department of Environmental Conservation depends on hunting to control the deer population.
More than 250,000 deer were harvested in the 2003 season, with the highest number of deer killed reported in western New York. Deer-hunting season runs from Nov. 19 to Dec. 11.
The Farm Bureau supports the state's decision to keep hunting as the primary way to control deer.
"The group that suffers most (from the increasing deer population) are farmers," said Peter Gregg, spokesman at the Farm Bureau. The bureau said hunting is the only way to limit deer population growth.
However, the Humane Society has several alternative suggestions for dealing with deer on farmland.
"When you kill deer, more deer move into that habitat," said Laura Simon, field director for urban wildlife program with the Humane Society of the United States.
Simon suggested that instead of hunting, farmers build fences to protect their crops from destruction.
But farmers argue that fencing is not a solution to their problem.
"Fencing is extremely expensive," said Jeff Williams, legislative director at the Farm Bureau. "Deer are just too plentiful in the state."
Animal-rights activists, however, said the price is worth paying, as long as the state stops hunting.
"Hunting deer only increases their population," said Bruce Friedrich, spokesman from People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals. PETA argued that populations under duress procreate more rapidly. PETA instead supported sterilization or "trap, neuter and release" programs, fencing in agricultural plots and using scents that keep deer away.
Hunters disagree.
"The only control that's logical and economical is still hunting," said Howie Cushing, spokesman for the Conservation Council, a hunting-advocacy group. The council is pushing for legislation to promote hunting in suburban areas.
For now, the Legislature seems to be leaning toward the hunters.. The Assembly is considering Larkin's a measure, passed in the Senate, that would extend the deer-hunting season for an extra month and a half. If that bill becomes law, the season would run from Nov. 19 to Jan. 31.
"This bill gives the DEC a tool to reduce the deer population," Larkin said.
ALBANY -- Sen. William Larkin owns three acres of property in New Windsor, Orange County, that he and his wife like to decorate with flowers.
At A Glance
Number of deer-vehicle collisions reported a year: 10,000 (approximate)
People killed in deer-vehicle accidents in 2004: 150
Top five counties for deer harvest last year:
* Steuben 11,571
* Cattaraugus: 10,658
* Allegany: 10,587
* St. Lawrence: 7,476 (including ME!-1 last week of Sept. on Rt. 11B)
* Chautauqua: 7,430
Source: State Department of Environmental Conservation
But more and more frequently, when they come out their door to look at the flowers, they find that the flowers have been eaten by deer.
Sometimes he sees "12 to 14 deer chomping down on the front lawn."
As the deer population in the state has swollen to an estimated 1 million and the hungry creatures have become fixtures in many suburban neighborhoods, the debate about how to control the growth has picked up steam.
The issue comes down to whether to expand the hunting season or figure out non-lethal ways to keep the deer herds at bay.
A bill sponsored by Larkin and Assemblyman William Magee, D-Nelson, Madison County, would create a task force to study the problem. The bill has passed both houses and is awaiting Gov. George E. Pataki's signature or veto.
Larkin is sponsoring another bill that has not been acted on in the Assembly that would expand the hunting season.
If Pataki approves, the task force will be composed of members from various state departments affected by the growing influx of deer: Health and Motor Vehicles.
"We wanted to create an issue-oriented project ... to get the departments to work together to mitigate the damage done by deer," said Larkin, a Republican.
"It's clear hunting deer isn't doing enough to control the population," said Magee spokesman Troy Waffner. "We needed to look at non-lethal ways to control the deer population."
Deer control has become increasingly difficult over the last 40 years, in part because deer habitats have grown. Hundreds of thousands of acres of former farmland that is abandoned have reverted to forest.
According to the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, last year hunters in Broome County took in 430 deer, while Tioga County hunters took in 4,734. In Chenango County they bagged 2,674. Exact figures for Delaware County were not available, but the DEC's calculated deer take for the county is 4,437.
According to the New York State Police, motor vehicle accidents in 2004 involving deer totaled 90 in Broome County, 26 in Tioga County, 49 in Chenango County and 61 accidents in Delaware County.
Legislators estimate that deer cost farmers $59 million a year and insurance companies $20 million in claims from vehicle-deer collisions.
Currently, the Department of Environmental Conservation depends on hunting to control the deer population.
More than 250,000 deer were harvested in the 2003 season, with the highest number of deer killed reported in western New York. Deer-hunting season runs from Nov. 19 to Dec. 11.
The Farm Bureau supports the state's decision to keep hunting as the primary way to control deer.
"The group that suffers most (from the increasing deer population) are farmers," said Peter Gregg, spokesman at the Farm Bureau. The bureau said hunting is the only way to limit deer population growth.
However, the Humane Society has several alternative suggestions for dealing with deer on farmland.
"When you kill deer, more deer move into that habitat," said Laura Simon, field director for urban wildlife program with the Humane Society of the United States.
Simon suggested that instead of hunting, farmers build fences to protect their crops from destruction.
But farmers argue that fencing is not a solution to their problem.
"Fencing is extremely expensive," said Jeff Williams, legislative director at the Farm Bureau. "Deer are just too plentiful in the state."
Animal-rights activists, however, said the price is worth paying, as long as the state stops hunting.
"Hunting deer only increases their population," said Bruce Friedrich, spokesman from People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals. PETA argued that populations under duress procreate more rapidly. PETA instead supported sterilization or "trap, neuter and release" programs, fencing in agricultural plots and using scents that keep deer away.
Hunters disagree.
"The only control that's logical and economical is still hunting," said Howie Cushing, spokesman for the Conservation Council, a hunting-advocacy group. The council is pushing for legislation to promote hunting in suburban areas.
For now, the Legislature seems to be leaning toward the hunters.. The Assembly is considering Larkin's a measure, passed in the Senate, that would extend the deer-hunting season for an extra month and a half. If that bill becomes law, the season would run from Nov. 19 to Jan. 31.
"This bill gives the DEC a tool to reduce the deer population," Larkin said.
R&S 
OWNER/PRESIDENT
Long seasons and high limits with no tagging program!!! ;D ;D ;D