Bill Cochran is a Roanoke Times outdoors columnist.

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Bill Cochran's Outdoors

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• Less freedom at Hatteras for surf casters
• Here’s the scoop on hunting shed antlers
• Want more grouse? Get used to hearing chainsaws
• Sunday hunting bills aplenty, but some hunters hold out
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• Hunting for a book on rabbit hunting
• More comments on Sunday hunting
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• Winterize your boat? Heck no! Keep on fishing
• Senator gets attention of DGIF
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Bills that would have stripped the General Assembly of its long-held power to oversee menhaden and give that authority to the scientists of the Virginia Marine Resources Commission met a quick death at the hands of lawmakers who sided with industry over sport fishing and the environment.

My observations in last week’s Cochran Column proved to be premature when I said the measures appeared to have a chance this time after being soundly defeated in the past.

Sport fishermen lost big time when Sen. Ralph Northam, D-Norfolk, pulled his bill when it became obvious it was headed for defeat. The next day a House subcommittee killed an identical bill from Del. John Cosgrove, R-Chesapeake.

“We learned a lot from this year’s experience, and will be better prepared for the future,” said Matt Strickler, Northam’s legal assistant.

The menhaden is an important food fish for most species that anglers pursue. It also serves as a filtering device for the Chesapeake Bay.

Texas-based Omega Protein converts millions of tons of menhaden each year into everything from pet food to health supplements.

According to the Virginian-Pilot, Omega spends thousands of dollars on lobbyist and in campaign contributions, including $30,000 going to Gov. Bob McDonnell’s campaign.

UPDATE ON GENERAL ASSEMBLY

Here is the status of several General Assembly bills of interest to outdoor sportsmen:

HB 131 has passed the House without a negative vote. It would allow hunters to donate more than the current $2 to Hunters for the Hungry when they purchase a hunting license. Right now the limit is $2. This is a good bill for a worthy cause, even though few hunters take advantage of the current check-off.

HB 486 would make it unlawful to entrap legal hunters by placing bait or salt in the areas they occupy. It passed the House 97-0.

HB 1283 would allow the possession of a shed deer antler without the need for a permit. Passed the House 95-1.

SB 93 requires children 12 and under to wear a life jacket during most boating activities. Pass the Senate 30-10. Similar bills have been defeated in the past.

SB 289 would establish a lifetime hunting and fishing license for youngsters under age 2 at the cost of $125 for residents and $250 for nonresidents.

SB 668 was voted out of committee 13-0 and would broaden saltwater fishing license requirements in order to comply with a new saltwater national registry which could cost as much as $25 per angler.

BOWHUNTER, HOUND CLUB SETTLE DISPUTE

Curt Lytle, a bowhunter and professional bass angler, had this to say about the past hunting season: “I enjoyed the quietest and best hunting I’ve ever seen.

The tranquility came when Lytle, who owns more than 100 acres in Isle of Wight County, was in the process of settling some of the hostilities that he and members of the nearby Walters Hunt Club have suffered for several years.

Lytle has argued that deer hounds owned by the club have been coming onto his property without his permission, disrupting his bowhunting. The club members have said they are protected under Virginia’s Right to Retrieve Law, saying it gives them the right to go onto private property to retrieve dogs even without permission from the landowner.

A battle ensued. Lytle sued. The club hired Richard E. Railey Jr. as its attorney He is a sitting member of the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries, a hound owner and avid deer hunter.

All sides agreed that it was in the best interest of hunting if the issue could be settled out of court. And so it was. According to Lee Tolliver of the Virginian-Pilot, the outcome was:

• Lytle dropped the lawsuit and agreed to never publicly discuss the state’s right-to-retrieved law.
• Club members must keep their dogs off Lytle’s land and enter it only with permission.
• The club will appoint a member to communicate with Lytle about any future problems.
• Railey agreed never to represent any party in a legal matter against Lytle.

“The biggest threat to hunting these days is when hunters using different techniques fight against each other,” said Railey.

In this case, “both sides sat down and put their heads together and came up with an amiable solution that will help to preserve hunting for both sides,” he added.

The bigger question, what impact will this case have on the Right to Retrieve Law and the many hound hunters vs. landowners conflicts it creates across Virginia?

Lytle may have dropped the suit, but it seems he won the case for landowners.

DGIF PRODUCTIVITY BETTER THAN AVERAGE

Matt Koch is the new chief operating officer of the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries. His background is business, not biology.

Knoch has put his workforce productivity skills into play to determine if routine tasks, such as answering e-mails and attending meetings, are sapping the agency’s time to do innovative things that will enhance the experiences of outdoorsmen.

“All totaled, we spend 17 weeks doing mostly administrative work for our jobs, not necessarily advancing the thinking and output of the agency,” he said. He gave examples:

• ”We send and receive nearly 10,000 emails a year which consumes 8 weeks of work time.
• ”We meet 240 hours per year which consumes another 6 weeks of our time.
• ”We spend 120 hours per year searching for digital information which adds another 3 weeks to the total.”

The good news is that the DGIF productively figures are better than the national average. Koch said.

“The better news is that there are proven approaches to winning back at least a month of that time so we can reprioritize it to higher valued efforts. The best news is that a month of time saved per employee across our agency would equate to $2.5 million worth of time annually.”

The findings of Koch are the result of his in-house work, but he would like to carry this study a step further and is pursuing a grant designed to help employees get better control of their work.

OUTDOOR BRIEFS

• The latest entries in the International Game Fish Association world record standings is a 29-pound, 14-ounce flathead catfish landed from the James River in Richmond by William L. Nicar. Get this: it is in the 8-pound line class.
• Hunting license sales in the United States were up 3.5 percent in 2009, according to the National Shooting Sports Foundation. In an economy when most things were going down, the increase in hunting license sales most likely occurred because people had more time to hunt and were intent on filling their freezer, the foundation said. Hunting also is viewed as an inexpensive recreation.
• You might think that visitation at Virginia’s State Parks would decline during a weak economy, but last year more than 7.2 million visitors showed up at parks setting a new attendance record. State parks prosper during a struggling economy because they are viewed as a less expensive way to spend a vacation or weekend. All the while, park officials get their task done during a time when their budget has been slashed.
• You have to wonder, which side of Bob Pond made him more famous among striped bass anglers? Was it his tireless conservation efforts to save stripers from extinction or was it the famous Atom plug that he made and sold? Pond, who played a key role in the resurgence of the striped bass, has died at age 92.
• It is tax time, and the Department of Game and Inland Fisheries is reminding sportsmen -- and others -- that they can contribute a portion of their state tax refund to the 28-year old Nongame Wildlife Program by marking the proper check-off box on their tax form.

MEETINGS/EVENTS/SEASONS

Smith Mountain Striper Club meeting, Feb. 5, 7 p.m., at Moneta Community Center, program on emergency care while on the water.

Mid-Atlantic Sports and Boat Show, Feb. 12-14, Virginia Beach Convention Center.

Grouse season closes Feb. 13.

Bass master Classic, Feb. 19-21, Lay Lake, Birmingham, Ala.

The Greater Virginia Sporting and Big Game Show, Rockingham County Fairgrounds, Feb. 19-21. Includes Hunters for the Hungry turkey calling contest. Feb. 20 1 p.m. vasportsshow.com.

Custom Building Fishing Rod Exposition, Feb. 20 and 21, High Point, N.C.

Western Virginia Sporting Show, Augusta Expoland, Fishersville, Feb. 26-28

Rabbit season closes, Feb. 27

Department of Game and Inland Fisheries board meeting, 9 a.m. March 2 at the agency’s headquarters, 4000 W. Broad St., Richmond

Smith Mountain Striper Club meeting, March 5, 7 p.m., Moneta Community Center, swap meet.

Appalachian Highlands Chapter Ruffed Grouse Society Sportsmen’s Banquet, March 13, 5 p.m., Holiday Inn, 101 W. Springbrook Drive, Johnson City, Tenn.; information from Spencer Young.

Smith River Trout Unlimited meeting, March 18, 6:30 p.m., Rania’s Restaurant, Martinsville, update on Smith River fishery by Scott Smith, Department of Game and Inland Fisheries biologist, information from Shane Pinkston.

Smith Mountain Striper Club meeting, April 2, 7 p.m. Moneta Community Center.

Youth spring turkey hunt day, April 3, 2010.

Trout Heritage Day, April 3

Spring gobbler season, April 10-May 15, 2010.

BASS Elite Blue Ridge Brawl, April 15-18, Smith Mountain Lake.

Virginia Fly Fishing Festival, Aprils 17-18, Waynesboro.

Department of Game and Inland Fisheries board meeting, 9 a.m. April 20 at the agency’s headquarters, 4000 W. Broad St., Richmond

NRA annual meeting, May 14-16, Charlotte Convention Center, Charlotte, N.C.

North Carolina State University Sport Fishing School, May 30-June 3, 2010, Hatteras, N.C.

Department of Game and Inland Fisheries board meeting, 9 a.m. June 8 at the agency’s headquarters, 4000 W. Broad St., Richmond

Department of Game and Inland Fisheries board meeting, 9 a.m. July 13 at the agency’s headquarters, 4000 W. Broad St., Richmond

Department of Game and Inland Fisheries board meeting, 9 a.m. August 17 at the agency’s headquarters, 4000 W. Broad St., Richmond

Department of Game and Inland Fisheries board meeting, 9 a.m. October 5 at the agency’s headquarters, 4000 W. Broad St., Richmond

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