INDIANAPOLIS â Wetlands legislation that had seen compromises added that were favorable to environmental groups ended up passing Tuesday with those changes stripped, providing little protection to Indiana classified wetlands.
The bill passed the House on a 58-40 tally, with numerous Republicans voting no on the final version, which saw amendments favorable to environmental groups stripped out at the last minute Monday.
Lawmakers from northeast Indiana, where much of the stateâs remaining wetlands can be found, voted against the bill. They included Reps. David Abbott, R-Albion, Ben Smaltz, R-Auburn, and Denny Zent, R-Angola.
The bill now returns to the Senate where its author, Sen. Chris Garten, can either agree to the amendments to the bill or send it to a conference committee between the House and Senate to work out differences. Once that process is complete, the bill advances to Gov. Eric Holcombâs desk for approval or a veto.
IDNR Awards Grants for Migratory Waterfowl Habitat Restoration Projects
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. – The Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) today announced the award of grants for waterfowl habitat restoration and preservation in Canadian waterfowl breeding grounds. State Migratory Waterfowl Stamp Funds are utilized to award grants to provide for the conservation and propagation of waterfowl, for the development of additional waterfowl propagation areas within the Dominion of Canada that specifically provide waterfowl for the Mississippi Flyway, and for projects approved by the IDNR for the purpose of attracting waterfowl and improving those migratory waterfowl propagation areas. These state funds are collected from Illinois licensed waterfowl hunters every year and are set aside specifically for this purpose as outlined in state statute.
Approved earlier this month, the grant will fund the construction and installation of 600 new hen house nesting structures in the heart of North Dakota’s Prairie Pothole Region during the next three years. Delta will secure matching funds to cover 10 years of maintenance on the new fleet.
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Installation will begin next winter, ultimately bringing the number of Delta Waterfowl hen houses in North Dakota to more than 1,000, and pushing the total in the U.S. and Canada well past 10,000. Locations where the new hen houses can be installed to produce the most ducks are currently being evaluated.
Smitko elected Chair of Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries Commission
January 8, 2021
Jerri G. Smitko was elected chair of the Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries Commission (LWFC) and William “Joe” McPherson, vice-chair during the Commission’s January meeting Thursday (Jan. 7) in Baton Rouge. The two Commissioners will serve in those positions through 2021.
Smitko is an attorney and the owner of Smitko Law, APLC, in Houma. She is a graduate of Nicholls State University and Tulane University School of Law. Smitko was special legal counsel to the Terrebonne Parish Consolidated Government from 1992 to 1998, and the assistant parish attorney for the same body from 1988 to 1992. She has served on various boards throughout her career.
Don’t Overlook North Dakota as a Premiere Outdoors State Ammoland Inc. Posted on
Brandon Butler in ND: North Dakota offers endless hunting and fishing opportunities across a beautiful landscape.
USA – -(AmmoLand.com)- Over the course of two trips to North Dakota for different conferences, I covered most of the state.
What I found was an answer to the question of why Theodore Roosevelt chose this somewhat unheralded land to serve as his wilderness reprieve from life in New York City. Vast expanses of prairie, rugged badlands, thousands of pothole lakes, and lush riverways combine to give North Dakota a rich landscape filled with a wealth of fish and game.