PGC board to set limits
Final adoption of seasons and bag limits for the 2012-13 hunting and trapping seasons will take place when the Pennsylvania Game Commission's board of game commissioners meet for its quarterly meeting Monday and Tuesday at agency headquarters, located at 2001 Elmerton Ave., Harrisburg, off the Progress Ave. exit on Interstate 81. In addition, antlerless allocations for the upcoming license year, which begins Sunday, July 1, will be announced.
Monday, beginning at 8:30 a.m., the board will hear public comments on the proposed 2012-13 hunting and furtaking seasons and bag limits and at the conclusion will receive staff reports. Individuals interested in offering public testimony are limited to five minutes and may begin to register at 7:45 a.m. on a first-come, first-to-speak basis.
Tuesday, doors open at 7:45 a.m., and beginning at 8:30 a.m. the board will take up its prepared agenda to give final approval to hunting and trapping seasons and bag limits for 2012-13 and set antlerless deer license allocations for the 2012-13 seasons.
For those unable to attend Monday's meeting, the PGC will webcast the staff reports through its website at www.pgc.state.pa.us. A webcast of Tuesday's meeting will begin at 8:30 a.m.
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By a bipartisan vote, the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R. 4089, the Sportsmen's Heritage Act of 2012, which will now be reported the Senate for consideration. This bill will preserve the place of hunting, fishing and target shooting on U.S. public lands for this and future generations through four separate parts.
Title I requires hunting and recreational shooting and fishing to be recognized activities on all Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management lands. Title II protects recreational shooting on National Monuments under the jurisdiction of the Bureau of Land Management. Title III amends the Marine Mammal Protection Act to allow hunters who legally harvested polar bears in Canada prior to its listing under the Endangered Species Act to purchase permits in order to transport their trophies into the U.S. Title IV clarifies that the Environmental Protection Agency does not have the jurisdiction to regulate traditional lead component ammunition and lead fishing tackle.
Supporting the Sportsmen's Heritage Act of 2012 is a coalition of more than 30 organizations, including Safari Club International, National Rifle Association, the Congressional Sportsmen's Foundation, the Boone & Crockett Club, the National Shooting Sports Foundation and U.S. Sportsmen's Alliance.
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Schuylkill Headwaters Association has received a grant of $6,000 from the Coldwater Heritage Partnership, which has awarded grants totalling more than $58,000 this year to local organizations to protect and conserve Pennsylvania's coldwater streams. Coldwater Heritage Partnership is a cooperative initiative amongst Pennsylvania Trout Unlimited, the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission and the Foundation for Pennsylvania Watersheds.
Schuylkill Headwaters will use the funds to develop a conservation plan on Big Creek that will identify sources of impairments in the watershed and outline remediation strategies to improve the water quality in Big Creek so that it can be a healthy coldwater fishery. In addition, two other grants have been awarded in the Southeast Region, both in Northampton County, totalling $15,000.
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Sunday's edition of "Experience The Outdoors," hosted by award-winning Pennsylvania Outdoor Writers Association member Doyle Dietz, at 7 a.m. on 1410 WLSH and 9:30 a.m. on Magic 105.5, will focus on spring gobbler hunting and feature Ed Kennedy of Ed's Sports Shop, Tamaqua.
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A 3-D course for vertical and crossbows is open daily, 24/7, at the Hazleton Archery Club, 170 Woodside Drive, Freeland. For information, call the club at 570-450-0988.
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Bear's Head 3-D course is open daily through Friday, Oct. 12, from dawn to dusk, located on club grounds located off I-81 exit 134, 148 Lofty Road, Delano. For information, call the association at 570-467-0331.
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Pennsylvania Spring Biathlon will be, Saturday, April 28, beginning at 10:30 a.m., at Whitetail Preserve, Bloomsburg, comprised of 4k running and rifle marksmanship for
scholastic and adult divisions. For information, contact Frank Gaval at (570) 788-4219 or email barb123@ptd.net mailto:barb123@ptd.net .
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Registration is underway for the Schuylkill County Youth Field Day at Friedensburg Fish and Game, Saturday, May 19, from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. This is a free event for youth between the ages of 10-15 sponsored by the Schuylkill County Sportsmen's Association and Schuylkill Conservation District in cooperation with various outdoors and conservation organizations.
For information and required pre-registration, call "Porcupine Pat" McKinney at (570) 622-4124, ext. 113 or email porcupinepat@yahoo.com mailto:porcupinepat@yahoo.com .
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A National Wild Turkey Federation Women In The Outdoors event will be held Saturday, June 9, at Ontelaunee Rod and Gun Club, New Tripoli, for those age 14 and older. For information and required preregistration, contact Donna Balgosky at 610-767-6932 or email LehighValleyWITO@yahoo.com mailto:LehighValleyWITO@yahoo.com by Friday, June 1.
