Public invited to hear panel of stakeholders discuss state elk management Jan. 14

Staff and wire

The public is invited to attend what the Montana Outfitters and Guides Association is calling an open gathering for a conversation between representatives of stakeholder organizations about the future of Montana elk management and examining key recommendations that have come from the Elk Management Citizens Advisory Group.

The event is set for Jan. 14, the final day of the Montana Outfitters and Guides Association Winter Convention, from 8:30 a.m. to noon at the Delta Colonial Hotel in Helena.

It will include panelists from Montana Stockgrowers Association, Montana Farm Bureau Federation, Property Environmental Research Center, Backcountry Hunters & Anglers, Montana Wildlife Federation, Montana Bowhunters Association, Montana Sportsmen for Fish and Wildlife, along Montana Outfitters and Guides Association, and will be moderated by Stephanie Prater and Chuck Rein, two members of the advisory group.

The format, the outfitters and guides organization said in its notice to the public, is a conversation between knowledgeable people with divergent interests in how elk should be managed rather than a debate of the issues.

No public comment will be taken at the event, which was organized with the intent of helping people understand the issue of elk management from different perspectives, the notice said.

The Elk Management Citizens Advisory Group was created in 2022 by Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks after a December 2021 elk management proposal from Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks Director Henry "Hank" Worsech was met with swift and extensive opposition through public comment.

The measure prompting the most contention would have allowed hunters to buy over-the-counter tags to hunt elk on private property in eight hunting districts while reducing the number of tags available to public land hunters. Worsech did not put the proposal forward to the Fish and Wildlife Commission in its Dec. 21, 2021, meeting, but instead got permission from Gov. Greg Gianforte, who appointed Worsech as director in January 2021, to bring stakeholders together for input on the growing elk problem in the state.

The advisory group was tasked to address issues that include elk populations being chronically over the objective population in some areas, new disease concerns, continuing calls for more hunting access, reports of crowded public lands, and more people than ever coming to the state, the advisory council main page on the FWP website says.

The site added that Montana needs to find new ways to manage elk, and the people most directly affected need to be involved in developing solutions.

While the advisory group represents a variety of stakeholders who are interested in moving past old debates that have not significantly improved elk circumstances for hunters or landowners, and revisiting old issues with fresh eyes to identify new solutions, the site says, the process also included a months-long public comment period that ended Oct. 14.

The 12-member Elk Management Citizen Advisory Group met 10 times to develop a list of recommendations on how to improve elk management across the state. FWP staff analyzed the recommendations and looked at what it would take in cost and capacity to implement them.

Links to full information about the meetings that includes recording of the meetings, public comments and full recommendations with feasibility studies and other analyses can be found on the FWP website at https://fwp.mt.gov/aboutfwp/public-comment-opportunities/emcag-recommendations .

In summary the 15 recommendations are:

• Access Plus Program: To incentivize landowners to allow public hunting by addressing major concerns regarding allowing public access. This program would produce a pool of hunters that have an elevated skill set and intimate knowledge of landowner operations and concerns through required training.

• Choose Your Weapon/Season: To reduce pressure on elk on public land by easing the crowding on public land. This proposal would make hunters choose which weapon they want to hunt with, therefore limiting the number of people in the field at any given time.

• Collaboration between FWP, USFS, BLM & DNRC and Any Other Pertinent Local, State, or Federal Land Management Agencies: To reaffirm the relationships FWP has with these organizations/agencies including communicating their collaborations to the public.

• Create an A9 Tag Bundle: To increase harvest and lower populations in hunting districts that are over population objective. The reduction of elk populations in over-objective districts will also reduce disease risk associated with overpopulation.

• Develop User Friendly and Effective Methods to Collect Data: To demonstrate transparency on the part of the agency as to data collection methods. It would create ways for the general public to receive, contribute to and find data. This improves stakeholder relationships as everyone feels part of the process.

• Establish (where possible) Localized Elk Working Groups: Encourages communication between landowners, hunters, outfitters and local FWP biologists. Citizen science would be heard concerning elk movement, and together the group would address redistribution of elk, objectives, access and other related issues. Season structure and number of permits could also be topics.

• Expanded Hunter Education: To improve hunter/landowner relationships with programs similar to the Master Hunter Program. This would improve hunter quality and, with certification possibilities, a potential way for program graduates to access private land to hunt.

• Promote Focused Damage Hunts: To allow landowners and biologists to have a list of willing, local participants to choose from. This is a harvest tool to help landowners strategically redistribute elk, mitigate disease and improve stakeholder relationships.

• Improve Accessibility to the FWP Videos, Programs, PSAs, etc. that Promote the Desired Behaviors between Landowners and Hunters: To make existing communication pieces readily available or easy to find.

• FWP Landowner Liaison: To create a liaison position to work with landowners and create a communication pathway between community partners. This could improve stakeholder relationships and mitigate disease.

• We have to Manage Elk Where They are Not: To restore historic elk numbers in northwest Montana to alleviate the excessive elk hunting pressure that is experienced in the rest of the state. This proposal also is intended to strategically redistribute hunters, improve quality access to harvest and encourage better data collection by FWP.

• Understand and Mitigate the Disease of Brucellosis in Elk: Recognizing the impacts on livestock producers within the designated surveillance area who deal with the risk of disease transmission from elk to cattle and improve stakeholder relationships.

• Use of Shoulder Seasons: The intent would be to assess the benefits of shoulder seasons, redistribute elk, and reduce landowner hunting fatigue, thereby improving relationships between landowners and hunters.

• Stakeholder Meetings: To fulfill one of the key components of the group's intended purpose - "to forge new relationships among stakeholders."

• Enforce Stricter Penalties for Trespassing and Other Bad Behaviors by Hunters and Landowners: The intent of tougher laws is to discourage trespassing and other unethical behaviors that occur, including landowners illegally blocking or detouring access to public lands, as well as to improve stakeholder relationships and address quality access to harvest.

More information about the advisory group and its work can be found at https://fwp.mt.gov/aboutfwp/elk-management-citizen-advisory-group .