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White House conference to focus on conservation
June/July 2008
by J.R. Robbins, Managing Editor
Hunting Communications NRA

NRA will be among the groups represented at the White House Conferefence on North American Wildlife Policy, scheduled for Oct. 2-3 in Reno, Nevada. This conference will bring together major American hunting and conservation groups, along with key government agencies, to lay the foundation for a ten-year Recreational Hunting and Wildlife Resource Conservation Plan. The ultimate goal is to improve wildlife conservation and boost hunting opportunity on public lands.

The meeting came about as a result of an Executive Order, issued August 16, 2007, by President George Bush: "The Facilitation of Hunting Heritage and Wildlife Conservation." This order called for the federal agencies to facilitate the expansion and enhancement of hunting opportunities and the management of game species and their habitat. Specifically, the Departments of Interior and Agriculture were tasked to evaluate the effects of their actions on trends in hunting participation, consider the economic and recreational values of hunting, manage wildlife and wildlife habitats to expandand enhance hunting opportunities, and work with state and tribal wildlife managers to foster healthy and productive wildlife populations.

The order also called for the Chairman of the Council on Environmental Quality and the Secretaries of Agriculture and Interior and the Sporting Conservation Council* to convene this wildlife policy conference.

Principal topics to be addressed at the conference include:
• The North American Wildlife Conservation Model
• State/Federal/Tribal Wildlife Management
• Habitat Conservation and Management
• Funding for Wildlife Conservation
• Perpetuating Hunter Traditions

It may all sound terribly bureaucratic, but this is not just another meeting, and it could have far-reaching implications, especially for those who hunt and shoot on federal lands.

NRA's role in the conference will focus primarily on Perpetuating Hunter Traditions, which includes: enhancing programs that recruit and retain hunters, educating up-an-coming leaders in the wildlife conservation field about hunting and trapping, and enhancing hunting and recreational shooting access on federal lands.

Representing NRA at the conference will be Susan Recce, NRS-ILA Director of Conservation, Wildlife and Natural Resources, who said, "The conference is the culmination of a year-long, bi-partisan effort that identified the predominant challenges for wildlife for this century, and the policy and legislative actions needed to carry forward the goals of the executive order." She added,"This conference will set the stage for wildlife conservation management in the 21st century much as the 1908 Governors' Conference led by President Theodore Roosevelt did for the 20th century."

Indeed, one of the most signifcant facts about the conference is that it's the first time since Theodore Roosevelt that a president has deemed wildlife conservcation and our hunting heritage importnat enough to bring together those that have a stake in these issues and craft a long-term strategy.

It is also a milestone in that it will take direction and focus from the hunting and conservation community, and will actively engage elected officials from across political backgrounds to ensure its success in future years no matter who is in the White House or controlling Congress.

"The vision of our forefathers helped protect this country's precious natural resources, but we have work that we need to continue in order to ensure we have healthy wildlife populations and continued opportunities for hunting," stated Sporting Conservation Council Charman and Boone and Crockett Club Chairman, Bob Model. "Hunters have long led the charge on protecting wildlife and their habitat, and it is with this perspective that we will lay the foundation for the future of wildlife conservation and our hunting traditions."

*A federal committee created to advise federal agencies on conservation issues of interest to the hunting community.

Hunter's Rights is focus of new NRA website
June/July 2008
by J.R. Robbins, Managing Editor
Hunting Communications NRA

NRA thanks the editor and publisher of Wisconsin Sportsmen’s Digest for allowing us this space to communicate with the hunters and gun owners of Wisconsin.
NRA recently wrapped up its annual convention, held in Louisville, KY. A record breaking crowd of more than 66,000 showed up. The massive exhibit hall, with 457 gun manufacturers and other outdoor vendors was the main draw, along with a full schedule of seminars, banquets and auctions.

Many of those visitors were especially intrigued by NRA’s Great American Whitetail Collection, a display of some of the finest examples of whitetails ever taken in North America — including the famous Jordan buck from Wisconsin. Visitors to that booth also got a chance to chat with staff about a website NRA launched late last year — nrahuntersrights.org. Visitation to the site has been strong and feedback on it positive, but there is one really disturbing thing about the site — the fact that there is a need for it.

The number of licensed hunters has dropped steadily, from 14.1 million in 1996 to 12.5 million today. Gleeful anti-hunters claim that hunting is dying, and no longer of interest to Americans.

But it isn’t lack of interest in hunting that’s causing the decline.

It’s overly complex, nit-picking regulations that turn inadvertent mistakes into criminal offenses. It’s too much difficulty in finding a place to hunt, or even to sight-in your rifle. It’s overzealous law enforcement. It’s archaic minimum-age hurdles that must be cleared before youngsters can hunt. And it’s radical anti-hunting groups — and their sympathetic media — that succeed in closing down hunting seasons, even when they are overwhelmingly justified by the science of wildlife management.
With all these factors combining to make it harder for an average citizen to hunt, we saw a need to keep people informed through a website devoted to hunters’ rights issues.

If you have not clicked on nrahuntersrights.org yet, here’s a small sampling of some of the story topics already covered:

In Wisconsin, NRA opposed the Earn a Buck program. It’s ineffective and inappropriately attempts to dictate hunter behavior in the field. It also discourages many sportsmen who may have just a few days to hunt each year, from hunting at all. In a time when hunter numbers are declining, we need ways to encourage more people to hunt — not drive out the hunters we have left.
Also in Wisconsin, the radical anti-hunting group PETA tried to force Northwestern Middle School to take down its “Hunter’s Wall,” where one teacher allowed students to post photos of themselves with downed game. NRA applauds school officials’ refusal to take the wall down.

In Alaska, guide Jim Hamilton and his brown bear hunters were startled when a low-flying plane buzzed their camp. The plane carried a local TV news crew, whose members camped about 50 yards from the hunters. The crew crowded the hunters all the next day until a kill was made, and at one point a cameraman allegedly got in front of a rifle on one stalk. A few days later, the station aired a story questioning whether a perfectly legal hunt was fair chase and ethical. According to Hamilton, the pilot and TV crew “ruined the hunting experiences of at least six hunters and endangered their safety as well.”

In Oregon, hunters are complaining than an increased cougar population — brought about by a ban on using hounds for cougar hunting — is leading to substantially increased predation on deer and elk. The ban was strongly advocated by anti-hunting groups — and now deer and elk hunters are paying the price in decreased opportunities.

In Arizona, half — yes, half — the population of desert bighorn sheep on Kofa National Wildlife Refuge have died because of drought. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service planned to install water-for-wildlife devices to save the remaining sheep — but radical environmental groups sued to block them! NRA and other groups stepped in, helping to allow the water projects to go forward while the suit is in progress.
In New Jersey, despite clear scientific justification for a black bear season, anti-hunting zealots managed to block it. The antis went a step farther when they tried to pass legislation that would remove hunters and fishermen from the State Fish and Game Council, and allows political appointees — meaning anti-hunters — to replace them. New Jersey sportsmen roared their opposition at rallies, in the press, and at the polls. Major sponsors of the bill were voted out, but anti-hunting sentiment in the state remains strong.

In Montana, anti-hunting groups have filed suit to keep gray wolves in the northern Rocky Mountains on the Endangered Species list, despite an indisputable recovery and a crying need for wolf management.

We’ve covered many other topics. And while hunters’ rights issues make up the heart of the site, there are several sections, and various ways for readers to provide comment. “Hunting Headlines” includes stories about new opportunities, such as various states’ efforts to increase public hunting lands and introduce new seasons. Two of the most popular columns are the monthly “Gift Giveaway” where you stand to win muzzleloaders, hunting knives, binoculars, etc; and the “Trophy Gallery”, in which readers can share their best hunting photos. Also stay up to date on new products by checking into “Hunting Gear You Need,” or click on “Range News” to see if there’s a new place near you where you can sight-in before the season or just practice your marksmanship. “Eye on the Antis” keeps you aware of how groups like PETA and the Humane Society of the United States are trying to abolish hunting.

Perhaps most of all, the site is the primary source of information on what NRA is doing to protect your hunting rights. NRA is the largest hunting organization in the world, and every issue of concern to hunters is of concern to us. Hence the name, nrahuntersrights.org.

Got a question for NRA about hunting? Send an email to huntersrights@nrahq.org.

To join NRA, call 800-672-3888.