Wisconsin Mixed Bag: Natural Resources Board to meet Dec. 13 in Madison – Outdoor News
Madison — The Natural Resources Board (NRB) will meet in-person at 8:30 a.m. Wednesday, Dec. 13, in Room G09, State Natural Resources Building (GEF2), 101 S. Webster Street, Madison, to consider several proposed rulemaking documents, a proposed land sale and donations. The public may watch the meeting on the DNR’s YouTube channel.
The board will hear an update on the deer season and consider authorizing public hearing and comment periods for three scope statements: related to definitions, notifications, fees, agreements, reports and procedures for interim action and remedial action for environmental contamination; related to definitions, land use classifications, identifying environmental standards for soil and soil cleanup standards used to remediate environmental contamination; rules related to control of lead and copper in public drinking water.
The board will be asked to adopt rules: related to federal funding for the Urban and Community Forestry Grant Program; related to wild bait harvest regulations; related to Lake Superior cisco and lake trout regulations; and related to elk management.
The agenda is posted on the DNR website.
Lake Superior Lake Trout Season Now Open
Bayfield, Wis. – The Lake Superior lake trout season opened Dec. 1 and will run through Sept. 30, 2024, or until the harvest cap is met. To harvest a lake trout, anglers must buy a 2023-24 general fishing license and a Great Lakes trout and salmon stamp.
Lake trout are managed in Lake Superior using a quota system with different allocations for different groups. The Wisconsin waters of Lake Superior are divided into two units: WI-1, all waters from Superior to Bark Point, and WI-2, which includes waters from Bark Point to the Michigan border (Apostle Islands region).
A daily bag limit of three lake trout may be harvested from WI-1, and only two from the Apostle Islands region. In both units, lake trout must be at least 15 inches long, and only one fish over 25 inches may be kept.
The Apostle Islands unit quota is updated on a three-year cycle, with the proposed 2024-26 quota in the final stages of the rulemaking process. As proposed, the new quota includes a recreational allocation of 15,000 lake trout, which is about an 18% increase from the current quota. The NRB will vote on that quota Dec. 13.
CWD Found in Wild Jackson County Deer
Madison — The DNR confirmed the first positive test for CWD in a wild deer in Jackson County in the town of Garfield, which is within 10 miles of Eau Claire and Trempealeau counties.
The Jackson County bait ban will be renewed. Eau Claire and Trempealeau counties currently have three-year baiting and feeding bans in place, so this detection will not impact those counties.
The deer was a hunter-harvested 2-year-old buck.
The DNR and the Jackson County Deer Advisory Council are planning on hosting a public meeting, with the date and location still being determined.
Fourth Graders can get Free Tree Seedlings
Madison — The DNR is offering free tree seedlings to every fourth-grade student in Wisconsin as part of the DNR’s annual Arbor Day tree planting program. Fourth grade principals and teachers may now place seedling orders and coordinate delivery by completing the 2024 Arbor Day application by March 15, 2024.
The DNR provides about 50,000 free tree seedlings to fourth-grade students annually. Seedlings shipments include educational information on how to best plant and care for seedlings and trees.
“Trees provide a variety of benefits to people and the planet. They give off oxygen, trap carbon dioxide, feed and provide shelter for forest creatures and provide materials to build household items,” said Heather Berklund, DNR chief state forester.
