State takes look at Morro Bay hunting USA
June 25th, 2005 by Administrator
State takes look at Morro Bay hunting Opponents and proponents of hunting in the Morro Bay estuary will present their arguments to the state Fish and Game Commission in Bishop today.
Mandy Davis, a Morro Bay resident who lives on a boat and runs a kayak eco-tour business, is seeking to restrict hunting days and alter the boundaries where hunting is permitted. She started circulating a petition in January, gathering signatures from 161 people who support her position.
While Davis opposes all hunting, she says her petition is an attempt to be realistic.
“I’m trying to … present an option that has a chance of being ratified,” Davis said in a previous interview.
Duck and goose hunting are allowed in the part of the estuary that is a national wildlife area for three months, generally from November to January, for ducks and 30 days within that same period for geese. Hunting is not allowed in the city, the city-proclaimed bird sanctuary or Morro Bay State Park.
Davis wants to restrict hunting to two weekdays and one weekend day per week. She also is asking for a re-drawing of the hunting lines to exclude grassy islands, where many non-game birds go to rest.
But hunters, led by Black Brant Group of San Luis Obispo President Gene Johe, say that further restrictions are unfair. Hunters use the bay less than three months of the year, he argued, while recreational users have access all year.
“To me, it’s selfish of them to say ‘We’re not willing to share the bay with anybody because we don’t like hunting,’ ” Johe said.
The city of Morro Bay has sided with Davis, sending a letter to the Fish and Game Commission asking for limits on hunting. Council members say it’s because the city population and recreational use of the estuary have been increasing, and they want to balance both uses.
The Fish and Game Commission will make final decisions regarding waterfowl hunting at its Aug. 19 meeting in San Luis Obispo.
But whether or not the commission decides to limit hunting in Morro Bay specifically, local hunters probably will have fewer opportunities to hunt this winter.
Troy Swauger, a spokesman for the state Fish and Game Commission, said it’s likely the commission will recommend a statewide cut in goose hunting, either a reduction in the bag limit, currently two geese per day, or a further reduction in the 30-day season.
By Lindsay Christians
The Tribune