The New Hampshire Fish and Game Department will hold two biennial hearings in December, giving the general public (which includes hunters, anglers, and trappers) an opportunity to offer input on any aspect of Department operations, according to a recent press release.
The two meetings will be held on:
Wednesday, December 11, 2019, at 6:30 p.m. at New Hampshire Fish and Game Department Headquarters, 11 Hazen Drive, Concord, NH
Thursday, December 12, 2019, at 6:30 p.m. at the New Hampshire Fish and Game Department’s Region 1 Office on Route 3, 629B Main Street, Lancaster, NH
“We welcome hunters, anglers, and others who care about wildlife in New Hampshire to attend one of these biennial hearings and share your ideas about how we can serve you better,” said Executive Director Glenn Normandeau in the release.
Biennial hearings are held in odd-numbered years to provide the public with an opportunity to comment on and suggest changes to fishing and hunting rules, wildlife management strategies, and other Fish and Game functions.
These hearings precede (but no less have the potential to impact) the official game management rule-making process, which is expected to take place during the coming winter and spring. Additional public input periods will take place once a proposal for hunting changes have been presented to the Commission.
Intended to be an opportunity for dialog, discussion, and input, the meetings have, in recent years, become a grandiose soapbox for those generally opposed to hunting/trapping culture in the state.
In recent years, many requests have come before the commission or brought before the public from certain groups/individuals critical of hunting activities in NH. Those requests/comments include (but are not limited to):
an end to pheasant hunting
restrictions to rabbit/hare hunting
an end to opossum management
restrictions to bear hunting
restrictions on turkey hunting
an end to general trapping activities
restrictions to coyote hunting
restrictions to fox hunting
an end to fisher hunting/trapping
restrictions/changes to squirrel hunting
Its important to note that not all the topics listed above are expected to be discussed, as many have been previously proposed or suggested. However, the list points to the broad brush with which hunting critics tend to paint with.
In other words, debates on wildlife management in New Hampshire aren’t just relegated to one specific activity.
As with anything, Government goes to those who show up, and as we do expect a few of the topics on this list to be brought up, passionate outdoors-people are encouraged to attend these meetings. If not to make comments/suggestions as they see fit, perhaps simply to just be present and listen in on what others have to say.
You can read up on our previous coverage of those debates here:
Over 300 Sportsmen attended the last round of public testimony at the 2018 rule-making session. Sportsmen attended at such high volume, the meeting room reached capacity.
Over 300 Sportsmen attended the second round of public testimony last rule-making session in 2018, after dramatic changes were proposed at the behest of hunting critics.
Sportsmen attended at such high volume, the meeting room reached capacity, and the crowd of orange and camoflauge-clad citizens spilled out to the exterior of the building, with many additional attendees peeking in through windows and listening to testimony through open doors. Hunters and trappers made it clear, at that time, that an overwhelming majority supported hunting & trapping activities in the state. This type of presence should continue to be upheld.
The NHFG Commission has also bore the brunt of criticism recently on topics ranging from refusal to place restrictions on predator/coyote management, and appointment of a new Department Executive Director (candidates are currently being sought).
These recent topics have drawn ire from the animal rights industry and sympathetic political leaders who will (again) seek to remove the hunting aspect of the Commission’s appointment requirements and make-up this coming legislative session.
Read More: NH FISH & GAME: TIED TO THE WHIPPING POST
The December biannual hearing need not be steeped completely in negativity. If you are happy with the hunting opportunities available in the Granite State and supportive of the job the Commission and the Department has been doing - the public hearings are a great time to briefly present such input amid a time of much manufactured turmoil.
Either way, the outdoor sporting community is encouraged to have a presence.
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Meandering through the notches and scenic byways in the shadow of the White Mountains gives one time to reflect, ponder, and envision what life would be like in such a remote area. Its hard to imagine that the once pristine and vast wilderness of the Whites (now heavily laden with tourists and recreationalists of all stripes) was once home to many a die-hard yankee - living off the land and its self-reliant spoils.