Regulatory capture has its consequences. That's the subtext in an article by Bria Barton in the Bemidji Pioneer about how Chronic Wasting Disease came to threaten the wild whitetail deer herd in the Beltrami County area.
We recommend readers take a close look at Saturday's Officials discuss impact of chronic wasting disease on land, hunting season in Beltrami County and the reprint of the article published Sunday, Illegal dumping of CWD-infected deer carcasses a problem in north-central Minnesota county. It's being published across the Forum Communications chain.
We believe the second headline is more accurate. Here are the "money graph" sections:
Earlier this year, Beltrami County detected its first confirmed case of chronic wasting disease in a farmed deer herd.
Despite efforts to contain this rare yet highly contagious disease through quarantine and herd depopulation, the illegal disposal of infected carcasses on county land spurred additional concerns and assertive responses by local, state and federal agencies.
Last week, officials from the Minnesota DNR’s wildlife health and big game programs, along with partner representatives from the Minnesota Board of Animal Health and the University of Minnesota’s Center for Prion Research and Outreach, gathered to lead two public information sessions about Beltrami County’s current CWD status.
This included measures being taken to mitigate the disease, research being conducted to better understand it, and the steps deer hunters will need to take if hunting in Beltrami County once opening weekend kicks off Nov. 6-7. . . .
Dr. Linda Glaser, the assistant director of the Board of Animal Health, oversees the state’s Farmed Cervid Program and said Beltrami County’s first confirmed case of CWD was detected in a 3-year-old white-tailed doe at a Beltrami County farm in early April.
The herd was initially quarantined in October 2020 due to receiving 11 animals from a Winona County source herd that was linked to a Houston County CWD detection. These animals were considered CWD-exposed, leading to the quarantine. Among the deer received by the Beltrami County herd was the doe which tested positive for CWD, about 1-1.5 years after moving out of the source herd.
In May, 12 additional white-tailed deer tested positive for CWD in the infected Beltrami County farmed deer herd, five adult does and seven fawns. Earlier that month, the remaining 54 animals in the herd were depopulated by the USDA, and samples from each animal were collected and then tested.
However, during an inspection of the Beltrami County premises following the quarantine of the herd, a board agent discovered several adult deer and fawn carcasses had been moved by the owner to nearby county-managed tax-forfeited land.
Glaser said the herd owner violated quarantine by moving the carcasses off site without board permission. The board is now pursuing a court order for the herd owner to remedy conditions of dumping carcasses on county land.
Keeping deer out, not in
The illegal dumping prompted an investigation by the board, leading to collaboration with the Department of Natural Resources, Pollution Control Agency, tribal and local officials, among other agencies, to mitigate any potential spread of CWD from these carcasses.
Schwabenlander said in May his MNPRO team secured dumpsite carcass remains, soil, insects and plants for CWD testing. Through RT-QuIC testing, they identified CWD-positive bones.
At least 19 CWD-positive deer remains have been confirmed in the area.
“We can learn a lot from this dumpsite. It’s an unfortunate situation, but from a research aspect, we can really learn a lot about CWD prions in the environment,” Schwabenlander said. “When we look at the ecological aspect of this environmental contamination, some of those initial soil samples that we tested were also CWD positive.”
Because test results indicated CWD-causing prions are on the site, the Minnesota DNR began constructing a 10-foot-high, 120-foot-wide deer exclusionary fence in June that would prevent wild deer access to the site and reduce the risk of prion exposure.
Infected deer carcasses had been spread across multiple acres by scavengers, so the fence was to encompass approximately 12 acres of land. Blane Klemek, the assistant regional wildlife manager of the Minnesota DNR northwest division, said the fence was constructed to last 20 years with the DNR absorbing the cost of construction -- about $194,000 -- and maintenance.
“When we found out these carcasses were dumped on Beltrami County land illegally, we had a discussion, as DNR employees, because this is something we had never faced before,” Klemek said. “We had an idea that maybe it would be a carcass pile and we could just scoop them up and take some soil with it… but it was forested so taking and removing soil where these bone fragments were wasn’t going to be a possibility whatsoever.
So the fence became a reality. We were going to have to build a fence around this to keep deer out, not keep deer in.”
The fence was finished in August, and Klemek said about $9,000 was reimbursed to Beltrami County for lost revenue of timber, as the site was an “income-producing forest” for the county. He said nothing -- not even trees -- can be removed from the area because it creates a risk for spreading prions.
As we say, read the whole thing.
We had the dubious privilege of following the Minnesota House environment and agriculture committees, as well as floor sessions, over the years on this issue--from Roseville DFL suburban mom and deer hunting champion Jamie Becker-Finn unsuccessfully asking repeatedly for a hearing for her bills back when the Republicans controlled the House to one rural Republican jokingly proposing an amendment to fence in the wild deer herd, not the farmed deer, as an anti-CWD measure, since it would be wrong to limit the deer farmers in his district.
Let's hope the state legislature and the Walz administration get serious about saving Minnesota's deer hunting heritage. A small industry controlling the terms of this debate needs to be over.
Related posts:
- Statement: Minnesota DNR learns of 2 deer farms that received deer from CWD+ farm in Wisconsin
- Hunters, tribes, conservation groups and St. Louis County call on state to get rid of deer farms
- Tune in to House Enviro Committee hearing tomorrow morning for latest CWD information
- MN DNR press release: Return to mandatory testing in chronic wasting disease zones this season
- South Dakota Game, Fish & Parks: CWD detected in mule deer in new area, Perkins County
- UMN MNPRO’s latest research detects CWD prions in cervid muscles using RT-QuIC
- MNReformer Radio podcast interviews Jamie Becker-Finn on Chronic Wasting Disease politics
- Listen to MN House environment committee chair Rep. Rick Hansen talk CWD on Matt McNeil Show
- Special Board of Animal Health meeting to review farmed Cervidae rulemaking postponed
- Bad news from the North: CWD sweeps through Alberta & Saskatchewan deer & elk herds
- Forum News Service: MN Deerhunters Association wants to end deer farming
- Just in: House DFL Lawmakers urge resignation of Minnesota Board of Animal Health President
- Star Tribune: Deer farming and "CWD-infested dump site on public land" in Beltrami County
- Are deer farmers posing against MN DNR rule pausing movement of captive whitetails?
- MN DNR temporarily bans movement of farmed whitetails in state to protect wild deer health
- 5 more MN deer farm herds exposed to CWD; Beltrami carcass dump site inquiry continues
- News release: U of M testing finds presence of CWD prions at Beltrami Co. carcass dump site
- BAH: Southern Minnesota CWD investigation identifies new infection in Beltrami County
- Concerned about CWD in MN deer? Learn about new research from MNPRO's Peter Larsen
- Some of the science at the center of Update on Chronic Wasting Disease Efforts hearing
- VIDEO: MNHouse passes bill for process to extend funding for ENRTF projects for one year
- Session Daily: Experts want to study how CWD flows in state's waterways
- Sen. Andrew Lang seems behind the curve on current funding & progress of CWD test research
- VIDEO: University of Minnesota scientists share CWD research, search for test with lawmakers
- Environment and Natural Resources Trust Fund plan from U of M for CWD diagnostic test
- Peter Larsen slideshow: Development of Advanced Diagnostic Tests for CWD by U of M
Photo: A 10-foot fence surrounds 12 acres of land where domesticated deer remains were allegedly dumped near Hines. The fence was built by the Minnesota DNR in an attempt to help stop the spread of chronic wasting disease. "Blane Klemek, the assistant regional wildlife manager of the Minnesota DNR northwest division, said the fence was constructed to last 20 years with the DNR absorbing the cost of construction -- about $194,000 -- and maintenance." Contributed to the Bemidji Pioneer.
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