Friday, November 14, 2008 9:13 PM CST
OUR VIEW: Get the hunting procedures in writing
By the JG/T-C Editorial Board
editorial@jg-tc.com
To understand the flap over waterfowl hunting at Lake Mattoon, it is vital to know the current rules.
According to a statement from the City of Mattoon, the existing rules governing such hunting annually at the lake include the following:
- The city authorizes a volunteer “Lake Mattoon waterfowl hunting coordinator” to enforce city, state and federal rules for duck and goose hunting at the lake.
-Hunting is allowed from designated blinds in 12 spots.
-The aforementioned coordinator allocates use of the blinds.
- An individual annually receives permission to hunt from a specific blind, and that person gets preference for the same blind in years thereafter, assuming he or she follows all state laws and city rules.
- No hunting is allowed from boat blinds.
Those are the basics. Some hunters, however, allege that the rules are not being fairly enforced.
Elmer Smith is the volunteer coordinator for the city, and he has served in the post for a number of years. He told the Mattoon City Council this week that the current system works and has for three decades, and he sees no need to change it.
Others who say that fair access to hunting blinds is not being provided suggest a lottery system to rotate use of the available areas.
City leaders will consider the comments and information presented to them, and the next step is a recommendation by the Mattoon Public Works Advisory Board to the full council, which would make any final decision on possible changes.
With some hunters praising Smith’s efforts to remain fair, and others criticizing his methods as unfair, he, as coordinator, is in an almost impossible situation. Without written rules to go by, Smith — or whoever holds his position of authority in this case — is almost inherently left open to criticism, warranted or not.
It is not a far stretch of the imagination for a hunter who is unhappy with having to wait to use a blind to accuse Smith of bias, whether that accusation has merit or not.
A formal lottery system that allows sign-up by all interested, licensed hunters, and written records for rotation of use of the hunting blinds each season, surely would make Smith’s life easier, even if it simply puts on paper what he already strives for.
Such a system also would ensure clarity to the public and to some hunters who are disgruntled over the current method.
It’s time for the city to more formally document and enforce waterfowl hunting regulations at the lake.
No one’s best efforts could prevent some critics from alleging bias in the assigning of the use of hunting blinds. An impartial, consistent system, set in writing, makes sense.
— JG/T-C Editorial Board
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whatswrong wrote on Nov 14, 2008 9:21 PM: