Fish and Game Responses (or lack thereof)

Hi everyone - I wanted to provide you with an update. I have not forgotten this, and I am still emailing and trying to work with lawmakers to work towards game management policies that would lead to us being safer in our communities and help keep the muskoxen wild and not semi-domesticated. Unfortunately, Sarah experienced some personal tragedies recently, so we've not been able to spend as much time on this as we'd like. 

However, here is some of what I've been working on. 

Paul Labolle with Neal Foster's office has been communicating with me and trying to get some answers from Fish and Game. They finally responded to him and I wanted to address some of what they said. 

"Some of the requests are already permissible. For example, under state regulations, a Defense of Life and Property killing is justified in an emergency, and a person can defend their property by lethal means. The individual taking the animal is responsible for salvaging all the edible meat and surrendering it to the Alaska Wildlife Troopers who will provide it to charitable organizations. ADF&G personnel also fill this role and continue to respond to nuisance muskox calls." 

I take issue with this part of their email, for a couple of different reasons. Firstly - I have asked (repeatedly) what we can expect if we have to take multiple animals. Note that he clearly says THE animal (emphasis is mine). Anyone that has dealt with muskoxen knows it's rarely just a single animal, and they work together as a group. They refuse to give a direct answer. I responded to Paul and told him this is the issue I've been dealing with. I can't get a straight answer regarding herds/multiples. So, he asked them AGAIN about multiple animals, and this was part of their response: 

"ADF&G does not have information specific to herds. Under 5 AAC 92.410, an individual may kill a game animal in defense of life or property (DPL) if they did not provoke an attack or cause a problem by negligently leaving human or pet food or garbage in a manner that attracts the animal and if they have done everything else they can to protect their life and property. As defined in regulation, "property" means (1) a dwelling, permanent or temporary; (2) an aircraft, boat, automobile, or other conveyance; (3) a domesticated animal; or (4) other property of substantial value necessary for the livelihood or survival of the owner."

So, there clearly is no answer on what we can/should do, and they're refusing to provide any additional information, and it doesn't seem like they have an interest in creating a policy or answer.

Another part of their email to Paul stated this:

"Although, the best way to keep the animals out of an area in the long term is to use fencing. A variety of different fences are effective in keeping muskox out and are currently utilized by some Nome residents."

So, we are expected to, at great personal expense, put up fences to protect our property, our graveyards, and our gathering spots, because of a problem of their creation.

Lastly, this part of their email had my head spinning. 

"Finally, it’s important to note not all Nome residents feel the same. It is common for members of the public to request a group of muskoxen be moved, which is often quickly questioned by other members of the public. Additionally, frequent movements of muskox present challenges to some members of the Nome community because during summer months, sometimes on a weekly basis, the Nome area could have high numbers of muskox in proximity to Nome or be completely void of animals all together."

I asked Paul how exactly they came to this wild conclusion. What members of the public are questioning if they are moved? What challenges to which people in the community are created by moving muskoxen? This response tells me that because ultimately they don't want to deal with the issue, they're going to use people that supposedly question them being moved as a reason not to. I also pointed out that this is not just a Nome issue, and it's offensive and dismissive of them to ignore the villages that suffer financially and emotionally from the lack of management.

It's really quite mindboggling. 

So, what can you do to help?

-Continue to share the petition.

-Continue to reach out to the Alaska Department of Fish and Game and ask them to provide better management. Increasing the bag limit for the Tier II muskox hunter in 22C is a start, but it is ONLY a start.

-Email us at rramm.nome@gmail.com with photos and testimonials of how they are impacting your life, and what you have to do to be safe when you are outside of your home.

-Attend the Northern Norton Sound Advisory Committee meetings and voice your concerns (though the website has not been updated with upcoming meetings and I've emailed Georgianna Phillips in the past with no response so emails to her for updates would be helpful).

Thank you,

Miranda

P.S.

This is not an attack or in any way aimed toward our local F&G folks. Please do not take out your frustrations on them!