WDFW Commission to Consider Adoption of New Hunting Rules, Wolf Plan

The Washington Fish and Wildlife Commission is scheduled to take action on more than a dozen proposed changes in hunting rules for the 2012-14 seasons at a public meeting April 13-14 in Olympia.

New rules proposed for adoption range from allowing waterfowl hunters to use electronic decoys to one that would add a day to western Washington elk seasons.

The commission, a nine-member citizen panel appointed by the governor to set policy for the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW), will convene at 8:30 a.m. both days in room 172 of the Natural Resources Building on the Capitol Campus, 1111 Washington St. in Olympia.

The proposed hunting rules, posted online at http://bit.ly/qZ6EMZ , were developed after a series of public meetings and online surveys that began last summer. The commission was briefed on the proposed rule changes and heard public comments at its March 9-10 meeting in Moses Lake.

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In other business, the commission will consider adopting a draft statement designed to guide WDFW's implementation of the state's wolf plan and will receive a briefing on legal aspects of the species' protected status in Washington state.

In addition, the commission will consider approving a request by WDFW to purchase 1,144 acres along Asotin Creek in Asotin County and 49 acres on the Methow River in Okanogan County to maintain habitat for fish and wildlife. Both properties support salmon and bulltrout populations listed for protection under federal endangered species laws.

An agenda for the April 13-14 meeting is available on the commission's website at http://wdfw.wa.gov/commission/meetings/2012/ .