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Conservation Commissioner Barnett Lawley announced that the closures of areas to dog deer hunting in four counties, which were approved by the Conservation Advisory Board at its May 2008 meeting in Eufaula, will be implemented for the upcoming 2008-2009 seasons.
Lawley said there has been confusion about the closures after a committee formed to explore solutions to the dog deer hunting issues decided not to make any recommendations to the Commissioner for the 2008-2009 seasons because of time constraints.
At that May meeting, the Conservation Advisory Board approved new restrictions on dog deer hunting in four counties. Commissioner Lawley said that dog deer hunting will be prohibited in portions of Fayette, Hale, Perry and Crenshaw counties as approved at that meeting.
The area in Fayette County that will be closed to dog deer hunting for the 2008-2009 season is: that area west of US Highway 43 or north of AL Highway 18.
For Hale and Perry counties, the ban on dog deer hunting applies to: that area inside the following boundaries, from County Road 32 at the Hale County Line, west to the intersection of AL Highway 25, AL Highway 25 north until it intersects with the Talladega National Forest boundary, following the boundary south until it intersects the Perry County line, following the National Forest boundary east to Perry County Road 23 , south to the intersection of Perry County Road 29, south to the Spring Hill Church Road, Spring Hill Church Road west to the junction of Perry County Road 23 and AL Highway 14, west to the Hale County line.
The area north of AL Highway 10 in Crenshaw County will also be closed to dog deer hunting.
At the meeting in Eufaula, the Board passed a motion to form a committee to study further regulation of dog deer hunting beyond what was approved by the Board in May and to conduct another public meeting if necessary. That committee, comprised of representatives from landowners, dog deer hunters, Advisory Board members and Division of Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries' professional staff, met in June in Montgomery. After a discussion of the issues, the committee determined that any changes in the dog deer regulations at such a late date would be a hardship to landowners and hunters who need to make land lease and membership decisions for the upcoming hunting season.
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