Bill Cochran is a Roanoke Times outdoors columnist.

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Bill Cochran's Outdoors

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• Drum fishing on Virginia’s Coast comes in two colors
• Elk advocate finally gets his day
• Turkeys are plentiful, so why are hunting regulations so tight fisted?
• Anglers say closure of the point of Cape Hatteras is for the birds
• Column archive

Bill's Mailbag

• Putting down a bear cub brings complaint
• Recommendations for Virginia’s Wild Turkey Management Plan
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Bill's Field Reports

• A. Willis Robertson great name for new DGIF headquarters
• Big striper smashes Optimist tournament record
• Field reports archive

Resources

• Trout stocking schedule

The Department of Game and Inland Fisheries is scheduled to begin reviewing hunting, fishing, boating and wildlife diversity regulations at its March 24 meeting in Richmond.

With all the controversy swirling around the agency, this is not the greatest time to put a newly designed regulations’ process in place. What’s more, outdoor sportsmen are having difficult understanding the procedure and the same can be said of some staff members involved in it. Little has been done to clear up questions as the meeting approaches.

As best as I can tell, here’s how it works: At the March 24 the staffs will discuss meeting, potential regulations changes. Public input also will be received. No action will be taken.

On Aug. 18, staff will present their proposals, based on their recommendations and those of the public. Proposals approved will be advertised for public comment.

During an Oct. 27 meeting, final action will be taken on the advertised proposals. Regulations approved would become law the following season.

In the past, hunting regulations have been proposed about March, then approved about May. They become law in the fall. This cycle is repeated every other year. The new system will take some getting used to in order for sportsmen not to get current regulations mixed up with future ones.

Agency backers of the new process say it allows for more public input and provides more time to prepare law digest booklets.

OTHER SIDE OF THE FENCE

There have been times that Richard Welton has locked horns with commercial fishermen while serving as executive director of the Coastal Conservation Association of Virginia, a sport fisherman group. No longer.

Welton, from Virginia Beach, has announced that he is going to the “other side of the fence.” He has resigned the CCA post, which he held for seven years, to become the general manager at two Lynnhaven Inlet commercial fishing operations.

State CCA president Lee Kelly has praised Welton’s work with the CCA. Welton says he is no turncoat. The scientific management of fisheries resources is important to both sport and commercial fishermen, he said.

WILDLIFE VS. HUMANS

Next time you see a hunter, thank him. Hunters help keep down conflicts between wildlife and humans. Such conflicts are costly. A International Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies report estimates that deer/automobile accidents result in damages of more than $1 billion each year. Wildlife damage to households and efforts to prevent it cost approximately $633 million annually.

In addition, millions of dollars are spent each year to address damage to roads, bridges, dams, water drainage systems and electrical utilities caused by beavers, groundhogs and other species. Crops and livestock losses from wildlife in the United Sates totaled $944 million in 2001, and wildlife-caused damage to the timber industry is nearly $750-million annually.

OUTDOOR BRIEFS

>Deer season is over, but Hunters For the Hungry expects to receive up to 100,000 pounds of venison form deer control permits the next several months. Money will be required to process this meat for the needy, so the agency is promoting a $10 raffle for an ATV outfit. The raffle should be under way shortly.

>Rep. Jim Moran, D-Va., who has been on opposite sides of outdoor sportsman and gun owners in the past, is at it again. He has introduced a bill, H.R. 654, that calls for registering .50 caliber hunting rifles the same way machine guns are registered. An owner of such a rifle could not sell it or pass it along to a family member. Moran’s supporters include people who would like to apply the same restrictions to .30 caliber rifles and all guns that capable of shooting 100 meters.

>Otter Lake, along the Blue Ridge Parkway north of Big Island, will be closed to fishing March 20-April 15 while dam repair work is done. Officials say the lake will be drawn down, but not fully drained. Once it refills the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries will determine if the lake needs to be restocked.

>Steve Williams is resigning as director of the US Fish and Wildlife Service to become president of the Wildlife Management Institute, a nonprofit organization dedicated to scientific wildlife management. Williams has been a strong supporter of hunting and fishing within the agency since 2002.

>Mill Creek Landing, also known as Wake Landing, on the Rappahannock River is close for dredging and repairs. It is scheduled to reopen May 6.

>One of the fastest growing boat designs is the bay boat, which is beamy enough to tackle the rough water of an open bay yet has a draft that will allow shallow-water use. Now bay boats are showing up in bass tournaments. They have the size and power to shoulder through the wind and waves and get to that special bass hot spot, advocates say.

>Looking for a hunter education class? Click onto the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries Web site, www.dgif.virginia.gov and hit Hunting, then Hunter Education and you can fill in your ZIP code to find the class nearest you.

>A new version of “Open Fields,” a bill to provide access for outdoor sportsmen on private land, has been introduced by a bipartisan group in Congress.

>Tax time is a good time to remember wildlife by checking the nongame wildlife box on your state tax return. You can contribute a portion or all of your refund to this worthy cause. If you aren’t due a refund, you can send a check written to the Treasure of Virginia and designate it to the Virginia Nongame Wildlife Fund, at DGIF, P.O. Box 11104, Richmond, VA 23230-1104.

>The In-Fisherman Communications Network is celebrating its 30th anniversary. The organization will publish a special edition of its In-Fisherman Magazine scheduled to be on newsstands May 24.

MEETINGS/EVENTS/SEASONS

Turkey hunting workshop for novice hunters, March 19, Fulfillment Farms, Albemarle County, information from Jimmy.Mootz@dgif.virginia.gov.

The 2005 Virginia Ducks Unlimited State Convention and Banquet, March 18 and 19 at the Kingsmill Marriott in Williamsburg.

Kids Fishing Day, Robinson River, Madison County, March 19, information from Greg Safford, 540-341-4170.

Smith Mountain Striper Club meeting, 7 p.m., April 1, Moneta Community Center.

Tidewater Boat Show, April 1-3, Hampton Roads Convention Center, Hampton, Va. 804-425-6556.

Trout Heritage Day, April 2, 16 streams to open after being stocked, information from dgif.virginia.gov/fishing/TroutGuide/trout_heritage_waters.html

Youth day spring gobbler hunt, April 2.

Virginia Mountain Chapter of Ruffed Grouse Society banquet, April 9, Wyndham Roanoke Hotel, tickets $50 for individuals and $70 for individual and guest, society membership included, ticket information from Mike Taylor, 540-977-0087 (B) or 540-890-5133 (H).

Becoming an Outdoors Woman program, three days at Holiday Lake 4-H Center near Appomattox offering a variety of courses for women on outdoor subjects, information from Jimmy Mootz at Jimmy.Mottz@dgif.virginia.gov.

Cave Spring Optimist Club Tournament, Aprils 29, 30 and May 1, Smith Mountain Lake.

Spring gobbler season, April 9-May 14.

Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation’s American Outdoor Experience, Bristol Motor Speedway, May 13-15, information from www.americanoutdoorexperience.com.

Wilderness First Aid, May 17-18, Blacksburg, an 18-hour, two-day class that results in a two-year certification, $160, registration/information from http://wfa.net.

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