Contacts
John Olson, Indiana DNR, 317-232-4080
Herb Conley, USFWS, 612-713-5134
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
(Service), in cooperation with the Indiana Department of Natural
Resources (DNR), invites the public to review and comment on a
draft Environmental Assessment (EA) for a proposal to allow
limited use of some Indiana Fish and Wildlife properties for
field trials. The draft EA evaluates several alternatives,
including the proposed alternative, to allow limited field trials
on Glendale, Pigeon River, Tri-County, and Winamac Fish and
Wildlife Areas only during a restricted time period.
Field trials or tests are competitions in
which hunting dogs are tested for their ability to track, locate,
flush, or retrieve game birds or mammals. A trial may be formally
organized by a regional or national organization or may be an
informal field trial conducted by a local club. Trials include
pointer dog trials conducted and viewed from horseback, and
non-horseback events such as pointer, flusher, retriever, beagle,
and coon dog trials in which dog handlers and observers follow on
foot. Pen-raised game birds such as pheasants or quail are
usually placed on the course for dogs to point, flush, or
retrieve. These birds may or may not be shot for retrieval.
A Service audit for Indiana (Appendix E of
the Environmental Assessment) concluded that environmental damage
was occurring as a result of field trials on some fish and
wildlife areas and specified that all field trial/test activity
must stop until such activities were reviewed and an EA prepared.
The DNR has determined that there is a
public demand for and a need to provide for limited field trials
on fish and wildlife properties while protecting wildlife and
their habitats.
The proposed alternative that would address
this need involves; 1) limiting the properties where field trials
could occur to Glendale, Pigeon River, Tri-County, and Winamac;
2) allowing trials only from February 1 to April 15; 3)
restricting participants to walking; and 4) limiting the use area
to no more than a 100-acre block in an area designated by the
property manager. The two other alternatives considered are the
"No Action" alternative, which continues the
prohibition on field trials, and an alternative where field
trials will be phased out after 10 years.
The EA was prepared in compliance with the
National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) which applies to the
actions of all federal agencies. This action proposed by the DNR
will occur on property purchased in whole or in part and managed
with funding through the Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration
(Pittman-Robertson) Act, administered by the Service.
The proposed project is also being reviewed
under Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act. The
area of potential effect for this undertaking is the Glendale,
Pigeon River, Tri-County, and Winamac Fish and Wildlife Areas.
The public is requested to inform the Service about archeological
sites, buildings and structures, historic places, cemeteries, and
traditional uses of the area that could influence decisions about
the project.
Copies of the draft EA are available at the
Indiana DNR, 402 W. Washington St., Indianapolis, Indiana 46204
(telephone 317 -232- 4080); Glendale Fish and Wildlife Area
(FWA), RR #2 Box 300, Montgomery, IN 47558 (812-644-7711);
Tri-County FWA, 8432 N. 850 E., Syracuse, IN 46567
(219-834-4461); Winamac FWA, 1493 W. 500 N., Winamac, IN 46996
(574-946-4422), and Pigeon River FWA, 8310 E. 300 N. Box 71,
Mongo, IN 46771 (260-367-2164. The draft EA is also available on
the Service's Regional Internet site at:
http://midwest.fws.gov/nepa . Written comments should be sent to
Mr. John Olson at the above Indianapolis address; via email to jolson@dnr.state.in.us ; or via fax to 317-233-9593. Comments on the
proposed field trial are welcome and should be submitted in
writing. Comments should be received by Mr. Olson not later than
May 28, 2002.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is the
principle Federal agency responsible for conserving, protecting,
and enhancing fish, wildlife and plants and their habitats for
the continuing benefit of the American people. The Service
manages the 95-million-acre National Wildlife Refuge System which
encompasses nearly 540 national wildlife refuges, thousands of
small wetlands and other special management areas. It also
operates 70 national fish hatcheries, 64 fishery resource offices
and 78 ecological service field stations. The agency enforces
Federal wildlife laws, administers the Endangered Species Act,
manages migratory bird populations, restores nationally
significant fisheries, conserves and restores wildlife habitat
such as wetlands, and helps foreign governments with their
conservation efforts. It also oversees the Federal Aid program
that distributes hundreds of millions of dollars in excise taxes
on fishing and hunting equipment to state fish and wildlife
agencies.
For more information about the U.S. Fish
and Wildlife Service in the Great Lakes - Big Rivers Region, visit
our home page at http://midwest.fws.gov
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