Update: 2/4/2016 The Department of Natural Resources requested a clarification to this story:
“Baiting and feeding bans are governed by state law. Under state statute 29.336, Wis. Stats, DNR is required to enact a ban on the feeding and baiting of deer in any county that is within 10 miles of a captive or free-roaming deer that tests positive for either CWD or tuberculosis. When CWD is detected and bans are enacted, counties are designated as being ‘CWD affected.’ Oneida, Vilas and Forest counties are among this group.”
----- The Minocqua Town Board is urging the governor and local state representatives to pressure the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources to reconsider the deer-feeding ban enacted for Oneida, Vilas and Forest counties.
The ban went into effect this past month after deer were discovered with chronic wasting disease – CWD - - at a Three Lakes game preserve last December.
Minocqua resident Dean Crist, who has a petition on-line against the ban, told town supervisors Tuesday that the ban is ineffective in controlling CWD and deprives people who want to feed wildlife of their property rights....
"There are a lot of people in Minocqua who don’t like this ban. The second thing, there is a hell of a lot more people who feed deer than hunters. Those people are being the most adversely affected. They are non-hunters. They are just people who like to feed the birds; they like to feed the deer. What the DNR seems to be losing sight of is this resource, these deer, belong to all of us, the hunters and the non-hunters. They are not doing any beneficial herd control by doing what they are doing on this."
At his request, the board will send a letter asking for reconsideration to Gov. Scott Walker, DNR Secretary Cathy Stepp, and local legislators Sen. Tom Tiffany and Rep. Rob Swearingen.
