Minutes MAFWA Annual Meeting June 23 – June 26, 2019 Maumee Bay Lodge & Conference Center Oregon, Ohio Final Program – Exhibit 1 Sunday, June 23, 2019 MAFWA Executive Committee Meeting 5:00 pm President’s Welcome Reception (MAFWA) – Sponsored by Pheasants/Quail Forever Jim Inglis made remarks Hospitality Room – Sponsored by Bass Pro Shops Monday, June 24, 2019 Breakfast – Sponsored by National Wild Turkey Federation Ross Melinchuk made remarks. GREETINGS and WELCOME to Ohio Kendra Wecker – Welcome to Ohio Honor Guard and Pledge of Allegiance Kendra – Discuss topics, feel free to ask questions. Great events planned, known for wetlands, had a lot of rain and look good. Going to oldest duck club in the country tonight at Winous Point. Tomorrow to Howard Marsh, started talking about it 20 years ago, lot of negotiations and partners to the table, now on the ground. Opening had 10,000 people, has duck hunting, archery, kayaking, canoeing and walking on boardwalk and trail. We will go by state to directors. Thank you to all of the sponsors who have supported this conference, came in with record sponsorships (PowerPoint of Sponsors - Exhibit 2). Have special guests here, Ron Regan, AFWA; Ed Carter, President AFWA. STATE HOT TOPICS (State of State Reports - Exhibit 4) Kendra Wecker, Facilitator – Each state will give a short report. Kendra Wecker, OH – (McGee Marsh PowerPoint - Exhibit 3) Thank State of Ohio staff who helped plan this. Wonderful wetland, McGee Marsh, have dike issue, 2015 weather blew out the dike, $10 million needed to pay for the dike. Working on capital bill and get money from General Assembly, habitat severely damaged. High water and water pooled on properties. At same location, best birding areas, bird event (The Biggest Week in American Birding) put on tours and programs, 80,000 non-paying users coming to that area, just renting restrooms is expensive. Ohio Legacy Stamp can be purchased, and we try to guilt them into it, but some will, and some won’t purchase it. Set up tent at boardwalk and talk about benefit of conservation, habitat and birds but what gets them is when you tell them you are paying for the toilets and they will buy the stamp. Use what messaging you can use. Like to see participants have a hunting, fishing, or trapping license or Legacy Stamp to come to the event but not there yet. Staff needs to be recognized too for those 10 days of work. New governor is conservation minded, he has dedicated money to H20 Ohio Initiative to clean up the water in Lake Erie; may have heard 41 about Toledo water crisis a few years ago. $90 million is being dedicated for two years to go to three agencies, Department of Natural Resources, Department of Agriculture, and Department of EPA. For natural resources the majority will come to wildlife and will be focused on wetlands and wetland restoration in northwest Ohio. Other agencies focusing on agriculture runoffs and EPA on storm water reduction and sewer system improvements. Wetland team ready with a plan, have wetland chosen and trying to tie together to show public how to embrace wetlands. Ohio budget finished by June 30, have license fee increase for residents first time in 16 years for fishing, deer and turkey; attempted before in 2013. 2015 and 2017 but failed at all three. Expect increase in revenue of about $4 million. Kelly Hepler, SD – Have a new governor this year, first female in South Dakota history. Governor grew up on farm and ranch, runs lodge; was also congresswoman for eight years. Interesting to see, she talks about the family and what it means, this initiative, that drives her. First governor ever to talk about importance of hunting, fishing and trapping in inaugural speech. She talks about importance of pheasant hunting that drives South Dakota. Governor identified bounty program, had discussions on how to set that up; at same time trapping is lost art in South Dakota so wanted to get that going again. To go along with that we set up a live trap give-a-way, every family could have five, thought we would give away a few thousand traps. Opened on Saturday, exciting the interest it generated, in ten hours gave away 16,500 traps, cut back at $1 million and cut back to three per family. Give $10 per tail bounty of five species, with raccoons as primary. Most importantly it got people outside; used to identify species, target biology, not show statewide decrease of predators, but got kids live trapping. People don’t like bounties and live trapping, Humane Society made me a target, teaching children to kill; an interesting conversation. We combined both programs with trapping education program and talk about conservation. Asked governor if it turned out the way she thought, and she wasn’t sure. We are making sure we have habitat into the second century, cool things we are doing around that. You need money to drive habitat but also need people talking about it. Working lands program; Governor got about $1 million from legislature so we are got 5,000 acres, working lands in five- year programs; can put livestock on there and graze, pay per acre, 10 acres up to 160 acres, working land and getting families engaged. Longer term program, every acre counts; never get enough money out of federal programs to truly to be in Soil Bank or CRP days, would need $100 million, but gets landowners engaged, working with South Dakota State University on five-year, program parallels the working lands program and trying to show landowners to leave marginal habitat alone. When landowner comes in to borrow money, have conservation agronomist go with you to the bank who will explain your business plan and will provide more money for insurance and crop insurance. Long time look, 25-30 years down the road, so it makes sense to the family to do that and transfer down to that every acre counts; it is an exciting program. Scott Loomans, WI – We also have a new governor who has a clean water initiative with drinking water focus. He has asked for new research staff and program funding for our side of the department also. It could have wildlife impact, run off management, nonpoint source pollution, legislative committee interested in agricultural runoff management. Our department is in the middle of that project so will see results. CWD continues to be a big part of what we do, one part of state where present since 2002, and some people are weary of working on the issues. People going through learning about it for the first time and are concerned for the first time, board members and legislators torn on which way to go. We will remind people that we have staff experts on this, systems in place for testing, surveillance permit areas; think we need to remind residents what we are already doing, that is the way to get through different views. Planning to hold a conference in Madison on July 24 and 25; inviting regional states and have eight so far. We want to learn what you are doing in your states and get some new direction on 42 CWD. First elk hunt last fall, tribes got five permits and state hunters got five permits; result of great partnership with Kentucky and RMEF. We believe we will have a self-sustaining program, should take care of itself and be a great success story. Lead nation on black bear harvest, have a new plan in place; new trout management plan, 11,000 trout streams, good extra water with increase of 3,000 miles of trout streams, ground water recharge is strong, have class one naturally reproducing trout streams, now high quality. Good walleye fishing and Great Lakes in good shape and water level is high. Karen Waldrop, KY – No new governor, in place for three years. Pension plan in place, agency contribution used to be 34% match, went up to 84% and next year up over 100%, so employee that costs me $50,000 in salary, that will cost me over $100,000 per employee. Looking at new ways to combat that. Started conversations with partners but we need to look at options for getting things done for resources in Kentucky. Fixing pension is important but is going to be a challenge for our agency. Looking at restructuring and we just had a license fee increase in last couple of years, not an option right now. Looking outside normal hook and bullet, becoming something more than traditionally. Program coming up on one-year anniversary, check out Kentucky Wild, we have memberships and looking for sponsors; one of first large sponsors was a brewer. Memberships start at $25 and up, with membership you get t-shirt, bandanna and things like that, but you get to support wildlife. Reaching out to non-consumptive users, let them know what we are doing for conservation in our state. Working on trying to get a fulfillment package and going to really start pushing the program. Asian carp is also a challenge, working with Tennessee on ideas and programs. New Kentucky fish center, public/private partnership, providing seed funds and will be distribution center for Asian Carp. Commercial fisherman will have place to sell the fish always. A lot of small fish, providing eight-cent subsidy to commercial fisherman for bringing in these fish. Working on experimental harvest methods to training commercial fisherman on the Ohio and in western Kentucky as well. Even put in a seven-ton flake ice machine for commercial fisherman, whatever we can do to incentivize people to come catch fish.