As waterfowl and upland hunting seasons continue to open throughout the nation, Pheasants Forever (PF) and Quail Forever (QF) demand the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Congress pass the necessary measures to re-open Waterfowl Production Areas (WPAs), National Wildlife Refuges and other publicly purchased lands for recreational use by hunters and the general public.
“Waterfowl Production Areas (WPAs) are the most used publicly-owned resources by waterfowl and upland hunters, and now, after years of supporting these lands through their purchase of Federal Duck Stamps, hunters are locked-out during the brief season they are allowed to pursue their hunting passion,” says Dave Nomsen, Pheasants Forever vice-president of governmental affairs. The Federal Duck Stamp is the annual $15 stamp waterfowl hunters pay, of which 98 cents of every dollar is used to buy wildlife lands.
“WPAs are abundantly used by pheasant hunters, and soon, countless numbers of hunters will face an unfortunate reality when they reach their favorite public hunting spot only to find a ‘Closed Until Further Notice’ sign posted,” noted Nomsen.
Nomsen continued, “Additionally, denying access to public hunting lands is both unfair to those who sacrificed their hard-earned dollars to pay for those lands and detrimental to the rural business owners who financially depend on those hunters traveling to the towns where these WPAs and other wildlife areas are located.”
Pheasants Forever urges its members and the general public to contact their congressional member and demand that legislation to re-open public lands be passed immediately, and to voice their concern of Congress having not passed a Federal Farm Bill.
For more information, please contact Dave Nomsen at (320) 491-9163 or email Dave. For media inquiries, please contact Rehan Nana, Pheasants Forever public relations specialist, at (651) 209-4973 or email Rehan.
Pheasants Forever, including its quail conservation division, Quail Forever, is the nation's largest nonprofit organization dedicated to upland habitat conservation. Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever have more than 135,000 members and 745 local chapters across the United States and Canada. Chapters are empowered to determine how 100 percent of their locally raised conservation funds are spent, the only national conservation organization that operates through this truly grassroots structure.
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Rehan Nana, Quail Forever public relations specialist, at (651) 209-4973 or email Rehan