If any closures was due to an actual wildfire...ongoing, not hypothetical...then I get it...a clear public safety issue. But closing public hunting land due to dry conditions because of extended drought...what a load of BS!
To me, this just seems to be another affront to sportsmen and women and the current administration forcing their "Global Warming" views on the rest of us. And from what I can tell, no one drinks the Kool-Aid from this administration faster than CA.
Does anyone on the Bowsite feel the Forest Service or BLM should close public hunting land due to drought? Please let me know how you weigh in on this subject.
What follows is the text from the CA hunting digest. After you get past the "fluff" about the drought's impact on future tag numbers...focus on the statement about closing federal lands used for hunting access "this year" due to drought.
CALIFORNIA'S EXTREME DROUGHT MAY IMPACT BIG GAME HUNTING OPPORTUNITIES IN 2014
The dry conditions of the winter of 2013-2014 will likely have the greatest short term impacts on the quality and quantity of forage and water available for use by big game species. Lack of precipitation can lead to short-term reductions of water and a decrease in vegetative productivity, both of which can negatively impact an animal's body condition and possibly the subsequent recruitment of young into the adult population.
Drought conditions may also lead to an increase in the number and severity of wildfires and the spread of invasive plant species. Either or both of these scenarios could degrade habitat big game species depend upon.
At the time of this writing, California is in the midst of the most severe drought in its recorded history. Historic closures of fishing access on several of California's rivers and streams have just been implemented (February 5, 2014), and unless conditions change soon California's hunters may face unprecedented closures of public lands during the 2014 hunting season and a reduction in future hunter opportunity due to drought related impacts on big game populations.
California Department of Fish and Wildlife biologists are continuing to collect and analyze population information to provide final big game tag quota recommendations for consideration at the April Fish and Game Commission meeting.
There is still time for the drought to break, but hunters will be wise to monitor and evaluate conditions as they make their tag selections and plan their hunts once they receive their tags. Even though hunters may not see tag quota reductions for the 2014 Big Game Drawing, they are reminded that these quotas are set in April and many big game hunting seasons do not begin until the fall period. These are often the driest periods of the year in much of California, and if the drought persists it may result in the closure of many of the public lands many hunters use. Hunters can monitor current land-use conditions/restrictions at the following websites:
United States Forest Service: www.fs.fed.us/ Bureau of Land Management: www.blm.gov/ca/st/en.html California Department of Fish and Wildlife: www.dfg.ca.gov/Hunting/
Long term- I feel it is the goal of some environmentalists to eliminate all human access to public lands.
The fire restriction access is unfortunately a wise thing. There are just too many non thinking people around. Heck, just the heat from your catalytic converter can start a grass fire!
I know there are individuals and groups out there that would like to spot all public access but I don't think you can blame this on them... Just my opinion...
If everyone that used those lands wasn't stupid...it would be fine.
Unfortunately, there are also a lot of folks that make a good living off the Fire Industry that are self serving, and don't exactly subscribe to the same code of ethics as the general populace.
Mind explaining this? After 33 years of service my first interpretation is taking this as an insult.
It's no big secret that there is a lot of unnecessary backfiring going on. I know people in that have been in the Industry almost as long as you that have seen it many times. The State blames the Feds, and vise versa.
I'm not pointing a finger at you, I'm sure the folks you are associated with wouldn't use such tactics; but you cannot speak for the entire Industry. It's like any form of Government, there is always corruption, and it often boils down to self-preservation.
Fish and Wildlife in CA hasn't been about fish and wildlife since before I was born, and it keeps getting worse for the resources and those that would like to enjoy them. What California serves really well as is a textbook lesson in how not to manage big game. I tell the horror stories every time I hunt out of state, with the cautionary warning that it could happen in those States too.
Good luck with closing everything down. They are thinking about banning firepits at Ocean Beach in San Francisco because the Park Service doesn't have the staff to do routine patrols. It will be no different with other public land - the illegal idiots will still be out there.
