This week is an important one for Alaska sportsmen. Iditarod racers have their food drops due. This is important for a few. The Alaska Board of Game wraps up its meeting in Wasilla to discuss game management proposals for the Central/Southwest Region. This will affect recreation and subsistence for thousands of Alaskans.
The seven-member Alaska Board of Game meets throughout the year to discuss and act on game proposals for various regions in the state. The public and Alaska Department of Fish staffers generate the most proposals. Native organizations and special interest groups also pitch suggestions.
Presently the rules are on a two-year cycle. Once a regulation is decided on and put into law, it remains until the BOG revisits it during the next cycle. The Board has recently converted to a three-year regulation cycle. A three-year rotation may be too long to respond adequately to dramatic changes in game populations due to weather events and unanticipated hunting stress. The longer cycle is seen by the state as essentially a cost saving move.
Board meetings are expensive. The current meeting will run eight days. The first couple of days are for public testimony. Anyone who chooses can present their views on proposed game law changes. Individuals are only allowed five minutes of testimony so one must talk fast and stay on point.
Representatives from state Fish and Game advisory committees are allowed 15 minutes to testify on the issues important to their particular region. Public testimony complete, the board then spends the remainder of the meeting discussing the proposals and taking any action it deems necessary. The board may also make changes to rules and regulations based on recommendations from Fish and Game staff or board members.
Focus on Unit 13
Regulations most important to the sportsmen along the road system concern Unit 13, which has the heaviest hunting pressure of any area of the state. Access to hunting in Unit 13 is relatively easy. All one needs is a truck and an ATV. Spider webs of trails cover most areas.
There are at least 50 proposals that could affect hunting within the Glennallen/Denali Highway area, more than all of the remainder of the region (including Units 9, 10, 14, and 16), combined.
Potential changes that will generate considerable interest concern Nelchina caribou and predator control.
Presently, Nelchina caribou permits are tied to moose hunting. If someone receives a Tier I Nelchina caribou permit, (considered a subsistence permit), the permit holder cannot hunt moose anywhere except in Unit 13. This has been a contentious issue since its adoption for the restrictions it places of Nelchina caribou hunters. Expect considerable pressure from the public and advisory groups to modify this regulation or do away with it.
How much wolf control?
Predator control, particularly wolf control, is likely to be a hot topic too. Love 'em or hate 'em, wolves bring out an array of opinions. Wolf populations within the southern Interior are at one of the lowest levels in recent memory. Just before denning last spring, Fish and Game estimated the area's wolf population at fewer than 200 animals, though some trappers and pilots in the area believe there are fewer than half that many.
Local advisory committees tend to favor backing off a little on aerial wolf control until predator populations rebound a bit. My sense is the public sentiment leans toward keeping the hammer down. It will be up to the Board of Game to find a balance.
Another delicate subject is brown bear baiting. Black bear baiting is legal throughout Alaska, brown bear bait is not in most of the state.
A strong argument can be made for both sides.
One of the most controversial issue will be community hunts, which popped up a couple of cycles back in response to dissatisfaction with the old Tier II system for Nelchina caribou and Unit 13 moose. It has since morphed into a hunt that satisfies few and angers many. Count on a heated public discussion.
Public input on potential changes is extremely important. It may seem that the game board listens and immediately discards most testimony, but after nearly 40 years of being involved with the regulation process at various levels, I find that they do consider most opinions. However, game management is not something that can be tuned and re-tuned to fit the needs and desires of the hunting public. Biology must be the first concern if we are to maintain a viable game populations.
John Schandelmeier is a lifelong Alaskan who lives with his family near Paxson. He is a Bristol Bay commercial fisherman and two-time winner of the Yukon Quest International Sled Dog Race.