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| Results for POLL S946 | |||||||||||
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| WDNR Wardens - Priority focus - Where??? | |||||||||||
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Wisconsin’s wardens writing fewer citations; why?
In the Nov. 14 issue of Wisconsin Outdoor News, editor Dean Bortz wrote:
Madison — An informal audit of citations written by DNR conservation wardens from 2003 through 2013 shows that the number of citations issued from 2011 through 2013 has dropped – dramatically in some cases – in nearly all violation types monitored by the DNR. While no one reason has been identified for this change, George Meyer, executive director for the Wisconsin Wildlife Federation and former DNR secretary, said enforcement of all conservation violations declined 28 percent in the years 2011-13 compared with 2003-10. There are nearly 400 types of violations enforced by DNR conservation wardens. Meyer and others crunched the numbers for all of the line items over that time period to come up with an overall decrease of 28 percent. However, Meyer said individual line items of “important” violations saw much higher reductions in citations. For instance, citations for hunting deer during the closed season declined 85 percent from 2011-13 compared with 2003-10. Other violations Meyer highlighted were:
The information was collected by Tom Thoresen, of Fitchburg, a retired DNR warden who made an open records request. Thoresen is on the board of directors of the Wisconsin League of Conservation Voters. He started his search by looking at environmental citations, then looked at fish and wildlife enforcement. Thoresen shared his findings with Meyer. Todd Schaller has nearly completed his first year as the DNR’s chief conservation warden. He said in no uncertain terms that DNR leaders have not asked field wardens to hand out fewer tickets. "There has been no change in policy," Schaller said "To judge this based on (the number of) citations is not a fair assessment. Education and community involvement is a large part of a warden’s overall program. We put a lot of work over the past several years into community-involvement programs, such as Learn to Hunt, moreso than we have in the past. That can impact citation numbers if you just want to look at that," he said. Some of the decrease might be blamed on vacancies, but Schaller didn’t point in that direction. He said vacancies have always been an issue. The DNR now has 198 credentialed full-time-equivalent positions, but is authorized to have 224. "We’ve always had vacancies. Right now we are under 5 percent. In 2009 it was 10 percent; in 2010, just over 7 percent. It’s always a fluctuating number," he said. Larry Bonde, of Kiel, serves on the Conservation Congress for Manitowoc County. Bonde goes to the county circuit court at the end of every month to review citations issued by DNR wardens. "The wardens used to write 60 to 70 citations a month. During the salmon runs in the fall, it’s an easy 60 to 70 tickets a month. During the gun deer season, around 100 tickets in Manitowoc County. Now I’m seeing half a dozen to 10. One month we only had three citations," he said. Bonde said the Green Bay team, which covers Manitowoc County, has six field warden positions, but only two are filled. He said the marine team used to help fill in on dry ground, but that hasn’t happened much since Ryan Volenberg moved to the Poynette station. Bonde said DNR warden supervisor George Protegere, of Green Bay, is taking complaints and filling in for all four vacancies. "There may be many causes for this decline in conservation enforcement, including reduced agency emphasis in enforcement of conservation laws, reduced funding for conservation warden patrols, and increased vacancies in warden positions," Meyer said in a press statement. "The federation calls on the governor, the Legislature, and DNR leadership to take measures to correct the reason for the decline in enforcement of conservation laws." Later, during a phone interview, Meyer said a decrease in enforcement will be noticed by the outdoor public and that will negatively impact the DNR’s bottom line if even a small percentage of sportsmen believe they can get by without buying a license. "It’s not fair to the majority of sportsmen who do buy licenses. This affects law-abiding citizens, and it could eventually impact the DNR budget. Would two or three years do it? Maybe not. But if it becomes more known, that’s when you see drop-offs (in license purchases)," Meyer said. Schaller said his wardens have not decreased their field presence. "Our wardens are still involved in the community. I don’t see that having an impact on license sales or people trying to skirt the law thinking we’re not out and about when, in fact, we are out there," Schaller said. "Our different initiatives certainly are a part of this. We’re doing more youth fishing events, Learn to Hunt events, we’re involved in the new deer season structure, meetings with the public – there is a lot of pro-active stuff we’re doing that can impact citations. And, a lot of things can. We’ve had changes in the law (gun case law) and weather," he said. "It’s not that we’re not doing our job. I haven’t heard much from the public. I checked in with some state organizations. It hasn’t even caused a stir within the Wisconsin Wildlife Federation," he said. Nor does Schaller think the change has come about because of a lack of motivation. "Motivated? Since 2011, we have hired 50 new officers who are engaged in their jobs. They are motivated. They know what their role is within the agency and within the community," said Schaller, adding that the DNR also made initial offers to 11 recruits. Bonde, Meyer, Marc Schultz, and Mike Arrowood suggested the DNR pull the wardens away from recruiting and retention so that time can be used in the field. Schultz is chairman of the La Crosse County Conservation Alliance, and Arrowood is with Walleyes for Tomorrow. "They’re putting a lot of emphasis on recruitment and retention," Bonde said. "I don’t know if that’s the best way to use warden hours. Randy’s (Stark, former chief warden) argument was that people look up to wardens and kids like to interact with them, but … ." "Recruitment and retention is important, wardens should be involved, but to what extent? This is a legitimate question. It takes a lot of time and effort to train and equip credentialed law enforcement officers. Shouldn’t we have other people out there doing the recruitment and retention? We should not be taking a major part of their time away from basic law enforcement," Meyer said. "On Winnebago, overbagging and multiple-trip fishing is so commonplace it is a joke," Arrowood said. "Fond du Lac has not had a warden for more than six months in the past two years and everyone knows it." "They have less time in the field, their jobs are more diverse, more complicated, there is less money, less time for the wardens. At some point they’re going to be less effective," Schultz said. "The Learn to Hunt – there is nothing wrong with that, but you have to make it up somewhere else." Meyer took a swing at the education argument, too. "They make the point that we’ve been successful on education and that’s why violations are down. There are about 390 classifications of violations. There is a decrease in virtually all of those classifications," Meyer said. "That doesn’t happen through education. New laws? Sure, there is some education and certainly you will have a decrease (in citations), but not in all of these categories. They’re not doing that broad of an education effort," Meyer said. "The DNR has been doing that for 20 years, trying to gain greater compliance via education. That does not explain reduced results in terms of violations, and these violations are the kind where education plays no role. These are intentional violations. You know if you are shooting deer out of season – that doesn’t happen because you don’t know the rules. If you’re shooting deer at night with a light, that gets deterred by enforcement, not education," Meyer said. "Operating a watercraft while intoxicated, that should be zero tolerance," Meyer said. "Those are cases where you need citations. "We’re going to continue to monitor this and bring it to the public’s attention. The same is true with environmental violations – we’re working on that, too … ," he said. Schaller said a law enforcement program is based on three key elements: enforcement, education, and community involvement. "Evaluating a program based only on citations is not an accurate reflection of the great work done by the Bureau of Law Enforcement and our role as ambassadors for Wisconsin’s natural resources," he said. |
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| NEXT WEEK: Results for POLL S947 | |||||||||||
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DNR Ecologist recognized for efforts to protect, preserve wetlandsMADISON - The Wisconsin Wetlands Association honored long time aquatic ecologist Bob DuBois on November 6 for his outstanding efforts to promote the protection, restoration and enjoyment of wetlands in Wisconsin through dragonfly research and citizen science outreach. DuBois, who started with the Department of Natural Resources in 1983, was originally hired on as a trout researcher. Following the encouragement of his fellow colleagues, he decided to change directions and pursue his passion for aquatic insects. In 1994, DuBois saw the opportunity to popularize an insect that people were fascinated with but had little information about. At the time, there were no field guides for dragonfly species. Since then, he's written and published two field guides to help scientists and citizens alike in identifying the creatures. In addition, DuBois coordinates citizen monitoring efforts through the Wisconsin Odonata Survey, which gathers information and observations on dragonfly distributions and habitats statewide to fill previous gaps in knowledge. Since 2002, the survey has noted over 10,000 dragonfly records including the discovery of a number of new state-record species. In 2012, DuBois founded the Wisconsin Dragonfly Society, which created a structured environment for interested citizens to connect and share their findings as well as engage in the outdoors. This summer, the Wisconsin Society along with the National Dragonfly Society of the Americas co-hosted nearly 100 participants from 25 states and Canada in the Northwoods for their annual meetings. Executive Director for Wisconsin Wetlands Association Tracy Hames said a big part of their motivation to recognize DuBois was in part due to the fact that dragonflies are largely a wetland specific group but also because in his work DuBois has engaged citizens, encouraged them to get outdoors and made them excited about dragonflies and protecting their habitat. "Through Bob's work with the survey and the dragonfly society, he is making Wisconsin one of the leaders in the Odonata by furthering the science and excitement around the species," said Hames. DuBois continues to be motivated to serve this mission and centers his work on involving and engaging people in nature, especially youth. His early experiences with youth inspired him to shepherd citizen engagement as a major initiative for gathering dragonfly information. "I remember one time when I brought in a live dragonfly to show a class of sixth graders. They were so excited about it and their reaction was so striking, it left a lasting impression." said DuBois. "That's when I realized the huge opportunity for citizen science; it was a door just waiting to be walked through. It's all about getting people engaged. People won't protect what they don't love, and they can't love what they don't know." For more information on monitoring dragonflies or to join the Wisconsin Dragonfly Society, and visit their web site. People who know of someone deserving of recognition for their work to protect wetlands can nominate them for next year's Wisconsin Wetlands Association Awards in February. The Wisconsin Wetlands Association was established in 1969 and works to protect the state's wetlands resources through education, training, advocacy and research. The organization is one of the first statewide groups to focus exclusively on wetlands protection and has close to 1500 members, including scientists, educators, conservationists, hunters and citizens. Read more here: FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT:
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Less than a week to go! Learn new rule changes before Wisconsin's nine-day gun deer huntMADISON -- Opening weekend of the gun deer season, a special time of year for hunters throughout Wisconsin, is less than a week away. This year, hunters will see some important rule changes implemented as a result of Deer Trustee Report recommendations and extensive input from the hunting public. While many of your favorite hunting traditions will endure, hunters are encouraged to take some time this week to make sure they are ready for any rule changes that will affect their hunt. ""Many of the most common questions that we have received about these rules involve tagging deer and what tag they can use," said Kevin Wallenfang, big game ecologist for the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources. "To answer their questions, we first tell them to focus only on the area where they hunt. If they know their county and other basic information, they will have no problem learning this season's new rules." The department has provided a number of useful resources to help hunters learn the new rules. All hunters are encouraged to review the 2014 deer hunting regulations [PDF] and FAQs, available at dnr.wi.gov, keyword deer. The deer page also features regulations brochures, tag information and availability, and maps showing new management units and zones. To ask specific questions before or during the hunt, hunters can also contact the DNR Call Center toll-free at 1-888-WDNRINFo (1-888-936-7463). Call center staff are on hand seven days per week from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. Spanish- and Hmong-speaking representatives are also available. Hunters will also have multiple opportunities to interact directly with DNR wildlife, law enforcement and customer service specialists during a series of online chats leading up to opening weekend of the gun deer season. These chats are an excellent way to get questions answered and become better informed on topics of concern to Wisconsin's hunters. Upcoming chat topics include:
Hunters interested in receiving email updates regarding new regulations can sign up to receive occasional email reminders about season dates, license and tag types, and other important information. Visit dnr.wi.gov and click on the email icon near the bottom of the page for "subscribe for updates for DNR topics," then follow the prompts and select a list of your choice. Wallenfang encourages all hunters to take some extra time to review the new rules before heading into the field this weekend. "It will help prevent confusion and frustration so hunters can focus on enjoying this exciting week with family and friends, and hopefully bringing home your deer," he said. READ MORE HERE ... FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT:
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Saturday, November 22, 2014
DSORe eNewsletter Vol.9 Issue S947
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