Director Scorsese latest celeb against Iraq war

Anna Soppeck

By GEORGE SMITH georges@leader.net
 Thursday, January 09, 2003 &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Page: 2B 





WILKES-BARRE - The Pennsylvania Game Commission has proposed a new system
of wildlife management units throughout the state as well as a strategy to
address deer management specifically within those units. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The plan would eliminate the current county-specific system of antlerless
deer management and would cost hunters who want to pursue antlerless deer
throughout Luzerne County more money. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; At its meeting Tuesday in Harrisburg, the agency's Board of Commissioners
granted preliminary approval for a plan that would create 22 wildlife
management units statewide based on habitat, the human population, public and
private land ownership, physical features such as major roads and rivers, and
land use practices such as agriculture, lumbering and commercial development. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 At present, the commission uses different units to manage deer, bear,
beaver, bobcats, elk, pheasant, quail, turkey, waterfowl and other migratory
game birds. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Now, deer management is based on a system involving 67 county management
units. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Luzerne County is among four of the state's 67 counties that would be split
into four units under the proposed new plan. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The change is significant because antlerless deer licenses are issued on a
"per county" basis and may be used anywhere within the county of issue. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 With the new plan, the issuance of "doe" licenses will be based on the
management units. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 That will in general give doe hunters a broader range, but to hunt all four
proposed Luzerne County units, antlerless deer hunters would need a doe
license for each of those units. The doe licenses cost $6 in addition to the
cost of the general hunting license for resident hunters and $26 for
nonresidents. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The new management unit plan could be approved at the board's next meeting
set for April 7 and 8. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "The antlerless licenses will no longer be county-specific, they will be
management unit-specific," said Tim Conway, information and education officer
for the Commission's Northeast Region Office in Dallas. "You are going to be
able to hunt in several different counties (with a doe license) as long as you
stay within the management unit for which it was issued. It will give you a
larger area to hunt." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The approval of the 22 proposed units would necessitate a change in the way
antlerless deer licenses are issued because the units would no longer
represent individual counties. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The commission would establish the number of antlerless licenses to be
allocated to each unit, and county treasurers would continue to issue the
actual licenses. But the application process would start with hunters applying
by mail to the Commission headquarters in Harrisburg. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Licenses would be distributed among county treasurers for issuance on the
basis of the percentage of land area each county represents in the unit. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Applications received by the commission in Harrisburg would be examined,
unopened, to determine the number of applications received as well as to
verify delivery to the intended management unit. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Doe licenses from state residents would not be accepted prior to Aug. 4.
Nonresidents could apply on August 18. Unsold licenses would be available
August 25. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 To deal with deer overabundance in specific areas, the commission has
proposed a Deer Management Assistance Program designed to address deer
management objectives within the new units. The only lands eligible next year
would be those enrolled in one of the commission's public access programs. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Elk and waterfowl would not be managed under the proposed new units. Elk
are limited to a specific range in Northcentral Pennsylvania and migratory
game birds must be managed using federal guidelines. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 George Smith, a Times Leader staff writer, can be reached at 829-7230. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

State Studies New Wildlife Districts 
Antlerless Deer Hunting In Luzerne County Could Require Purchase Of Four
Licenses Because Parts Of The County Would Lie In Four Districts.

State Studies New Wildlife Districts Antlerless Deer Hunting In Luzerne County Could Require Purchase Of Four Licenses Because Parts Of The County Would Lie In Four Districts.