Hello Northlanders,
In less than two weeks, one of Minnesota’s richest traditions gets underway: the firearms deer hunting season. My family and I look forward to this each year and take try to take full advantage of the season, both in regard to our bag limits and spending time with one another. The Minnesota DNR’s deer hunting page is a comprehensive source for information concerning this year’s hunt.
Our state’s deer population is facing some significant challenges in the form of chronic wasting disease (CWD), a slowly progressive and ultimately fatal brain disease in cervid animals like deer, elk, moose, and reindeer spread animal-to-animal. It can remain infectious for years and is extremely difficult to destroy, requiring temperatures hotter than 1500 degrees, and normal disinfectants like bleach aren’t effective.
Yesterday, the Minnesota House Environment & Natural Resource Finance Division, on which I serve, jointly met with our Senate counterparts to receive an update on this issue and discuss potential solutions. Experts from the DNR, Board of Animal Health, and the University of Minnesota were on hand to share what they’ve learned since session adjourned. Since 2016, 50 cases of CWD have been discovered in deer in southeastern Minnesota. A doe was found to have the disease last winter in Crow Wing County, also.
Proactive steps within the DNR’s CWD Surveillance and Management Plan which includes studying movement, formulating new boundaries, and public engagement and outreach. In the management zones, the DNR has also deployed some self-service sampling stations.
The DNR had contracted with Waste Management to dispose of deer remains left in dumpsters strategically placed in areas where CWD has been found. Monday, Waste Management notified the DNR that they are backing out of this agreement. With such little notice before the opener, this is cause for concern as we work to stop CWD from spreading further.
The good news is that CWD is still extremely rare. In fact, during the DNR’s fall surveillance period, which ended this week, out of 1,789 samples, just one was confirmed to have CWD. If we follow through on prevention strategies, we can stop it from spreading. To learn more, the U of M’s Center for Animal Health and Food Safety has research, videos, and other information about CWD. Future generations of Minnesotans deserve to enjoy the same hunting heritage and traditions that we do now, and I am committed to delivering the resources to stop problems like CWD.
I hope you have a safe and enjoyable hunting season.
Sincerely,
Rob Ecklund
State Representative