- SENTRYGRAM -

PUBLIC FORUM - "THE PUBLIC WILDLIFE AND PRIVATE LAND--THE FUTURE OF HUNTING IN MONTANA"


WHERE: Bozeman Public Library, 220 E. Lamme St. Bozeman, MT

WHEN: 7:00 PM to 8:30 PM, Wednesday, October 23, 2003 (For those attending in person, please come by 6:30 pm, as seating is limited, and you will receive instructions on how to participate in the live radio broadcast.)

WHO: Sportsmen, landowners and outfitters discuss the future of hunting. Please plan to attend or listen to this important forum.

CONTACT: Craig Sharpe or Larry Copenhaver, MWF, 1-800-517-7256.


MONTANA WILDLIFE FEDERATION and YELLOWSTONE PUBLIC RADIO are proud to co-sponsor a forum on The Future of Hunting in Montana.

The forum will be broadcast live on Yellowstone Public Radio, and will be rebroadcast at a time to be
announced by Montana Public Radio.

Brian Kahn, host of Home Ground Radio, will moderate a discussion by four panelists, representing sportsmen, landowners, outfitters/guides, as well as taking questions and comments from the audience. The Forum is free, and the public is invited to attend. Both the live audience and radio listeners are encouraged to participate. Listeners can call in with their questions and views at 1-800-441-2941 or in Billings at 657-2941.

Unlike the European tradition of "The King's Game", and hunting as a pastime for the landed gentry, America has a rich cultural heritage based on publicly-owned wildlife, public lands and public hunting, private-public partnerships in conservation, and "good neighbor" access to hunt on private land. Over the past several decades, that heritage has come into question. Financially-strapped ranchers and farmers have found a cash crop in wildlife, and more and more are selling EXCLUSIVE access to the public's game.

Outfitters lease 7 million acres OF PRIVATE LAND to provide high quality hunting to paying
clients who come from all over the world to hunt in Montana. ON THESE LANDS, THE TRADITIONAL HUNTING OPPORTUNITY TO MONTANA HUNTERS IS A THING OF THE PAST. And millions of acres of public land lie behind private ranches--often under new part-time owners who have no tradition of
allowing public access. The end result? Some feel that the tradition of free public hunting in the West--and in America--is fast becoming a rich man's game.

The forum will take a hard look at the future of hunting in Montana and will address important questions:

  1. Should land ownership enable the owner to make a profit from selling access to wildlife owned by the people? If so, should the public be entitled to equal access or to some other kind of compensation?
  2. Private landowners often absorb serious costs by "playing host" to herds of deer, elk, and antelope. Should landowners receive compensation for damage caused by wildlife--from the public--the owners of the wildlife?
  3. Outfitting generates economic gain for the outfitters, guides, landowners and others. But is it depriving the average Montanan of the time-honored opportunity to hunt the public's wildlife?
  4. Millions of acres of public land lies "behind" private ranches, making them inaccessible to the public. Should the public have access--and if so, what kind--walk/ride-in, vehicle, controlled numbers or uncontrolled?
  5. What if public access would reduce the value or privacy of the private land?

Each "side" in this debate has legitimate interests and honest views--often diametrically opposed. But behind the differences, is there any "common ground"?

The forum will examine all these issues with particular emphasis on public access to public lands and public wildlife and the increasing privatization of wildlife.

For more information or your local YPR translator dial location, call Larry Copenhaver, 1-800-517-7256.

 

Thank you once more for standing up for Montana's wildlife heritage.
For More Info: Larry Copenhaver, Conservation Director
Montana Wildlife Federation
(406) 458-0227 • (800) 517-7256
Email: lcopenhaver@mtwf.org
<<<>>>