Rule-Making Notices
Notice of Hearing
Natural Resources
Fish, Game, etc., Chs.
NR 1—
NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that pursuant to ss.
29.604 and
227.11, Stats., interpreting s.
29.604, Stats., the Department of Natural Resources will hold a public hearing on the repeal of s.
NR 27.03 (3) (b) 2. and
8., Wis. Adm. Code, relating to the trumpeter swan and osprey.
Hearing Information
The hearing will be held on:
October 20, 2008
Monday
at 4:00 p.m.
|
Room 027
DNR State Office Building 101 South Webster St.
Madison (Entrance at the Webster Street doors only)
|
Pursuant to the Americans with Disabilities Act, reasonable accommodations, including the provision of informational material in an alternative format, will be provided for qualified individuals with disabilities upon request. Please call Sumner Matteson at (608) 266-1571 with specific information on your request at least 10 days before the date of the scheduled hearing.
Analysis Prepared by Department of Natural Resources
Statutes interpreted
Statutory authority
Summary of rule
The proposed rule will delete trumpeter swan from the Wisconsin endangered species list and the osprey from the Wisconsin threatened species list.
Comparison with rules in adjacent states
The proposed rule changes are non-controversial in nature and do not represent policy or significant changes that differ from surrounding states. Many of the other states in the mid-west continue to list trumpeter swans and osprey as endangered or threatened species. Wisconsin is fortunate to have had such successful recovery programs for these species.
Summary of factual data and analytical methodologies
The proposed rule changes are based solely on the biological recovery of these species in Wisconsin.
Small Business Impact
Pursuant to s.
227.114, Stats., it is not anticipated that the proposed rule will have an economic impact on small businesses. The Department's Small Business Regulatory Coordinator may be contacted at
SmallBusiness@dnr. state.wi.us or by calling (608) 266-1959.
Environmental Analysis
The Department has made a preliminary determination that this action does not involve significant adverse environmental effects and does not need an environmental analysis under ch.
NR 150, Wis. Adm. Code. However, based on the comments received, the Department may prepare an environmental analysis before proceeding with the proposal. This environmental review document would summarize the Department's consideration of the impacts of the proposal and reasonable alternatives.
Fiscal Estimate
Anticipated private sector costs
These rules do not have a significant fiscal effect on the private sector. Additionally, no significant costs are associated with compliance to these rules.
Copy of Proposed Rule, Submission of Written Comments, Agency Contact Person
The proposed rule and fiscal estimate may be reviewed and comments electronically submitted at the following Internet site:
http://adminrules.wisconsin.gov. Written comments on the proposed rule may be submitted via U.S. mail to Mr. Sumner Matteson, Bureau of Endangered Resources, P.O. Box 7921, Madison, WI 53707. Comments may be submitted until October 29, 2008. Written comments whether submitted electronically or by U.S. mail will have the same weight and effect as oral statements presented at the public hearings. A personal copy of the proposed rule and fiscal estimate may be obtained from Mr. Matteson.
Notice of Hearing
Natural Resources
Fish, Game, etc., Chs.
NR 1—
NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that pursuant to ss.
29.014,
227.11 and
227.14, Stats., interpreting ss.
29.014,
29.041 and
29.885, Stats., the Department of Natural Resources will hold a public hearing on emergency rule, Order No. WM-18-08E, (
EmR0824), revising Chapter
NR 10, pertaining to the 2008 migratory game bird season. This emergency order took effect on August 30, 2008.
Hearing Information
The hearing will be held on:
October 17, 2008
Friday
at 2:00 p.m.
|
Room 408
DNR State Office Building 101 South Webster St.
Madison (Entrance at the Webster Street doors only)
|
Pursuant to the Americans with Disabilities Act, reasonable accommodations, including the provision of informational material in an alternative format, will be provided for qualified individuals with disabilities upon request. Please call Kent Van Horn at (608) 266-8841 with specific information on your request at least 10 days before the date of the scheduled hearing.
Analysis Prepared by Department of Natural Resources
Statutes interpreted
Statutory authority
Summary of rule
This rule order establishes the season length and bag limits for the 2008 Wisconsin migratory game bird seasons. For ducks, the state is divided into two zones each with 60-day seasons. The season begins at 9:00 a.m. September 27 and continues for 60 consecutive days in the north, closing on November 25. In the South, the season begins at 9:00 a.m. on October 4 and continues through October 12, followed by a 5-day split, and then reopens on October 18 and continues through December 7. The special season for hunters age 12 through 15 will occur on September 20 and 21.
The daily bag limit is 6 ducks including no more than: 4 mallards, of which only one may be a hen, one black duck, one pintail, 3 wood ducks and 2 redheads. The daily bag limit may include 1 scaup except that from Oct. 18 to Nov. 6 in the north zone and Nov. 1 to Nov. 20 in the south zone the daily bag may include 2 scaup.
The USFWS has reduced the daily bag limit on scaup from 2 for the entire season to 1 for a portion of the season in response to a declining population trend from the 1970's until about 2001. Scaup are, however, still the third most abundant duck in continental surveys at 3.7 million. The Mississippi Flyway was given a scaup season of 60 days with 40 days at a 1 bird daily bag and 20 days at a 2 bird daily bag. Wisconsin had the option to pick where the 20 days with a 2 bird bag fall during the season.
This rule order does not allow the harvest of canvasback ducks which is a stipulation of the federal framework. The season closure is in response to a decrease in the canvasback breeding population. The reason for this decrease remains unanswered but may be due to over-flight to non-breeding areas because of dry conditions in the prairie region. The canvasback harvest in 2007 (125,000 nationwide) was only one-third of the number of birds that were projected could be safely harvested.
For Canada geese, the state is apportioned into 3 goose hunting zones: Horicon, Collins and Exterior. Other special goose management subzones within the Exterior Zone include Brown County, Burnett County, Rock Prairie and the Mississippi River. Season lengths are: Collins Zone - 67 days (three hunting periods, September 16 – October 5, October 6 – 26, October 27 – November 21); Horicon Zone - 92 days (2 hunting periods, first period beginning September 16 and the second on November 3); Exterior Zone in the northern duck zone - 85 days (Sept. 20 – Dec. 13); Exterior Zone in the southern duck zone – 85 days (Sept. 20 – Oct. 12 and Oct. 18 – Dec. 18) and Mississippi River subzone - 85 days (Oct. 4 – Oct. 12 and Oct. 18 – Jan. 1). The Burnett County subzone is closed to Canada goose hunting. The statewide daily bag limit for Canada geese in all zones is 2 birds per day during the open seasons within the zones.
This rule order adds ten days to the mourning dove season so that it extends to November 9 which is consistent with a new opportunity offered in the federal hunting season framework.
Finally, this rule corrects an inconsistency between the section that establishes shooting hours and the section that establishes when the hunting season begins. Both should indicate a 9:00 a.m. start on the first day of the duck season but the section on shooting hours incorrectly describes a 12:00 noon start.
Comparison with federal regulations
Under international treaty and Federal law, migratory game bird seasons are closed unless opened annually via the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) regulations process. As part of the Federal rule process, the FWS proposes a duck harvest-management objective that balances hunting opportunities with the desire to achieve waterfowl population goals identified in the North American Waterfowl Management Plan (NAWMP). Under this harvest- management objective, the relative importance of hunting opportunity increases as duck populations approach the goals in the NAWMP. Thus, hunting opportunity would be maximized when the population is at or above goals. Additionally, while FWS believes that the NAWMP's population goals tend to exert a conservative influence on overall duck harvest-management, other factors such as habitat are considered.
In the past, the regular Canada goose season was based on the allowable Mississippi Valley Population (MVP) harvest and was determined based on the spring breeding population estimate obtained from an aerial survey of the MVP breeding range as prescribed by the Mississippi Flyway MVP management plan. However, because locally produced giant Canada geese now constitute a considerable portion of the harvest in all states that also harvest Mississippi Valley Population birds, the Mississippi Flyway Council is testing the use of a standard season framework for 5 years. Beginning in the fall of 2007 and continuing through 2011, season lengths and bag limits for each MVP harvest state will remain unchanged. Each state retains the flexibility to schedule the timing of their Canada goose season. In addition, if the MVP spring population numbers drop to a predetermined low level during the 5-year period, the stable season framework will be adjusted.
All proposed modifications included in this rule order are consistent with these parameters and guidelines which are annually established by the Fish and Wildlife Service in
50 CFR 20.
Comparison with rules in adjacent states
Since migratory bird species are managed under international treaty, each region of the country is organized in a specific geographic flyway which represents an individual migratory population of migratory game birds. Wisconsin along with Minnesota, Michigan, Illinois and Iowa are members of the Mississippi Flyway. Each year these states meet to discuss regulations and guidelines offered to the flyways by the FWS. The FWS regulations and guidelines apply to all states within the Flyway and, therefore, the regulations in the adjoining states closely resemble the rules established in this rule order, and only differ slightly based on hunter desires, habitat and population management goals. These variations fall within guidelines and sideboards established by the FWS.
Summary of factual data and analytical methodologies
For the regular duck season, a data based process called Adaptive Harvest Management is used annually by the USFWS and the Flyways to determine which of 3 framework alternatives best matches the current year's data on populations and habitat (data from the spring pond and duck survey). The option of a closed season is also possible if survey conditions indicated that this is necessary for the management of duck populations. The determination of which alternative is selected is based in part on the spring wetland conditions on the breeding grounds and the Mid-Continent Mallard population. These data come from the May Pond and Breeding Waterfowl Population Surveys conducted by the USFWS and Canadian Wildlife Service on traditional survey areas as well as surveys from select states, including Wisconsin.
Wisconsin's regular Canada goose season harvest consists of close to a 50:50 ratio between resident giant and MVP population Canada geese. As a result, the parameters of Wisconsin's regular goose seasons are guided by the Mississippi Flyway management plans for the MVP and giant Canada goose populations and approved by the Mississippi Flyway Council and the USFWS. The health of these populations was measured with spring breeding population surveys, survival data and harvest rates obtained from banding and production studies. The surveys and studies are conducted annually and are supported by the State of Wisconsin as part of the MFC. The result of this work is reviewed annually by the MFC committee and the USFWS to measure the impact of the stable season framework trial period.
The primary elements of Wisconsin's waterfowl regulatory process include conducting spring waterfowl surveys, participation in MFC meetings, commenting on federal proposals, and soliciting input from the public. The state process begins with Flyway meetings in February and March each year where staff provide input to the development of federal framework alternatives and requests related to the early seasons. In May and June, breeding waterfowl surveys and banding are conducted in support of the regulatory process.
In early July, staff conducted a public meeting to solicit input from interest groups, including representatives of the Conservation Congress Migratory Bird Committee. At this meeting staff provided the attendees with breeding status information and asked for any items that they wish the department to pursue at the MFC meeting in mid July. Department staff then attended the MFC Technical and Council meetings. At this meeting staff were provided status information and the proposed framework alternative from the USFWS. Department staff then worked with the other states in our Flyway to discuss and develop proposals and recommendations that were voted upon by the MFC. Proposals that passed at the MFC meeting were forwarded to the USFWS for consideration by the Service Regulations Committee (SRC) at their meeting. The USFWS announced its final waterfowl season framework recommendation on August 1. Department staff summarized waterfowl status and regulation information for Wisconsin citizens and presented this information to the Migratory Committee of the Conservation Congress and at a public meeting (Post-Flyway Meeting) of interest groups and individuals in early August. Staff gathered public input at these meetings regarding citizen suggestions for the development of Wisconsin's waterfowl regulations given the federal framework. Public hearings were held in early August around the state to solicit additional input on the proposed annual waterfowl rule.
Small Business Impact
These rules do not have a significant fiscal effect on small businesses.
Fiscal Estimate
