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The Abington Citizens Network
where Abington, PA residents can share ideas and join forces to build a better community

 

Deer Hunting in Abington Township

 Residents interested in this issue might like to   contact us  to be connected with others of the same mind.
__________________________________________________

 

CHRONOLOGY (with newest first )

11-21  Discoved a disurbing Map with a location not known til now ... more on this coming . Maybe....

3-4-15 Public Affairs meeting -Hunts are approved again for Karebrook for Sept 19 to Jan 23 and for Alverthorpe 1 day
 Kudos to Commissioner Schreiber for opposing it .   The hunts are the result, again of a request by  "Abington Deer Management"  which has done this for many years.
From the minutes

KAREBROOK   "  Most of the deer are hit in the Meadowbrook Road  area and the surrounding streets and the only place to intercept them is in Karebrook."  Ok that would not be the case - because  ADM is also taking them from private properties nearby .
From the ninutes : "t
his past season, ADM did not remove any deer from there, but we know they are there  because they are filmed by cameras. All rules and regulations of the Game Commission are followed by ADM  (noted added : who is checking on that ? ) and ADM does not charge the Township and they are insured. Commissioner Schreiber questioned whether there was a vote taken earlier this year on deer hunting. Mr. Wendell replied no, but there was discussion about whether or not the amount of deer would decrease as a result of hunting, but we cannot correlate that this year as there were no deer removed. However, if there is no hunting the numbers will increase.

Commissioner Farren asked for the size of the herds.  Mr. Wendell replied he has seen 10 or 12 different deer on the cameras in Karebrook.  The President of Abington Deer Management Louis Clewell added that in addition to Karebrook we have quite a few properties in Meadowbrook and  Huntingdon Valley in which we have done very well this year, which is why there weren't too many in Karebrook this year. Also, this year there were trespassers in Karebrook, who cut straps on our stands hampering our efforts, but we have done very well on adjacent properties.
    It was asked about moving the deer instead of killing them.Mr. Wendell replied travel transfer has not been successful and the Game Commission  can provide more information about it. Also birth control has been tried, but that is not a  successful method either.


ALVERTHORPE  
Controlled Hunt in Alverthorpe Park  will be a one-day controlled hunt Mr. Wendell replied hunting has not been done in Alverthorpe for about seven or eight  years. There were a number of hunts from 1997 until 2007 and they were successful for removing deer from the park.  There are a number of properties that surround the park that deer come from and Wendell said they  had calls from neighbors about issues with deer in their yards
. Abington Deer Management can help to remove them. It is a one-day hunt that runs before dawn until about 1 p.m. The park is closed with fencing around it and we have assistance by the Police Department. He is also on the grounds, as well, making sure everything is being done properly.Notices will be sent out about the date of when this will take place and the park will be closed on that date with signage about the hunt. It will be strictly bow hunting. Mr. Wendell replied yes, shooting bows down towards the ground from tree stands is how it is done. 
( By sheer luck, no children have been removed from the park that way - despite that some sneak in the back entrances near their neighborhood and may have no idea that a "hunt is going on" since they might not have stopped to read all the signs,  as one would expect with children--and some adults,too)  It was noted Abington Deer Management has never had any accidents. 
 (but OK - no one ever has any accidents- until the first time that they do . That's why it's called an accident )

7-1-13 The Hunts are approved again - despite more humane ways to manage the deer  and the fact that residents are not happy having hunters operate in such close proximity to our homes --- and in places where our children may go to play. There is almost no noticeable warning - it is too small to read from a moving car and children can enter Karebrook from anywhere.

9-12 Deer Hunting Continues.......

6-24-08 The Deer Hunt issue will  be on the agenda for July 2, 2008 Public Affairs for approval -  It is only being proposed to be at Karebrook this year -  a controlled hunt for the entire season like last year - and not at either Alverthorpe or the Boy Scout  Nature Study Area / Meadowbrook Preserve .
 

5/14/08  Times Chronicle Article Discusses the alternatives & concludes hunting is best means of deer control.  http://www.zwire.com/site/index.cfm?newsid=19690561&BRD=1306&PAG=461&dept_id=187825&rfi=8

Sept 20, 2007 
The hunts were approved at the Boy Scout Preserve for 10 days in November and for the entire hunting season at Karebrook.

Sept 5th, 2007  Public Affairs meeting 7:30 Township Building  A motion passed to allow the deer hunting for 10 days in November at the Nature Preserve   and for the entire season at Karebrook.  It is our belief that misrepresentations were made at the meeting  that led to this vote
- about the number of residents in favor  (more residents weighed in against the hunt than for the hunt)
- about  Lyme disease statistics (" the deer tick" carries lyme, but the most common host is the white footed field mouse-
          and  research shows evidence that culling the herd in these situations could actually increase Lyme disease
          as other hosts are sought by the ticks )
-about traffic statistics ( accidents actually increased after the last "culling" of the herd)
- about the effectiveness of the hunt vs the danger  ( if just one or two deer were "culled - while risking a child who might
        happen through unaware of the "posted: keep out" signs )  There are huge  safety issues given the proximity of
        the residential areas.
It boggles the mind to watch the process get approved anyway.  

 July 31st, 2007  7:30 pm Meeting at Abington Township Building about the Boy Scout Nature Study area and Karebrook.  The meeting date was not changed despite conflict with Baederwood Development meeting, so a number of  interested residents attended  that meeting instead.  We'll give you an update as soon as we can on this evening's meeting.

______________

PETITION

 

Regarding the planned

Deer Hunt at the Meadowbrook Boy Scout Preserve & Karebrook

(Meadowbrook Road & Valley Road)

 

TO:            The Abington Board of Commissioners

DATE:       July 31st, 2007

 

We, residents of Abington Township, ask that you reject the proposed 2007-2008 open deer hunts planned for the areas of the Meadowbrook Boy Scout Preserve and Karebrook for the following safety reasons:

·         The areas in question now have more than two-dozen school-age and younger children living on the properties surrounding the two proposed hunt areas, representing a significant change in the neighborhood demographic since hunts were approved in past years.

·         The location of the hunt at the Boy Scout Preserve is immediately across the street from a school bus stop that is occupied by elementary school-age children during the months and times of the hunts.

·         Children do explore the woods and creeks in this vicinity and the proposed hunts would put them in jeopardy.

 

IF YOU  AGREE,  TYPE "ADD MY NAME "  IN THE TITLE BOX  OF AN EMAIL AND PUT YOUR NAME & ADDRESS IN THE TEXT .  THESE WILL BE SHARED WITH  YOUR BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS .    EMAIL IT TO lel@abingtoncitizens.com
 

END OF PETITION

____________________________________ 


 

 

Here is some information some of the neighbors learned from their inquiries.  We hope all has been understood and presented here correctly so that you may see the many aspects of this issue. If you know of any changes or corrections that apply, please   contact us  to let us know. As always we wnat to be careful not to spread any misinformation :

 

1)  WHERE WILL THE HUNT OCCUR?

 

One area is the "Boy Scout Nature Study Area Game Preserve", at the corner of Meadowbrook Road and Valley Road. The other area, “Karebrook”, is believed to be the area next to the Meadowbrook train station, just past the four houses situated on the northbound side of Valley Road.  The Pennsylvania Game Commission website clearly indicates that there are no approved state game lands in our specific Wildlife Management Unit in Abington.

 

2)      HOW WILL THE HUNT OCCUR?

 

Hunters will be permitted to use bows to hunt the deer.  According to the Pennsylvania Game Commission, hunters must provide a safety zone of 50 yards minimum and must be stationed in trees shooting downward, not on the ground.  The zone of only 50 yards puts both motorists and residents on Valley Road, Stockton Road, Mill Road, and Meadowbrook Road all at risk.  Additionally, the Township must obtain a municipal deer control permit from the Pennsylvania Game Commission in order to sanction hunting as a means for deer herd management.

 

3)   WHO IS APPROVED TO HUNT?

 

The Abington Board of Commissioners approved only the members of the Abington Deer Management Association to hunt in the proposed areas.  They were recommended due to their experience with archery hunting.   Most of the members of ADMA are Abington residents and they carry liability insurance in the amount of an aggregate of $2,000,000.  However, residents are concerned that there has been no notification or method they know of  to prevent non-members of the ADMA to enter the Preserve to hunt in the proposed areas.

 

4)   WHEN WILL THE HUNT OCCUR?

 

Based on a discussion with Township officials at the July 2nd meeting, we believe the hunt will occur during the deer season beginning September 15, 2007 and ending January 26, 2008. It may be 15 days during that period or it may be mewer or more. We are not yet certain.

According to the Pennsylvania Game Commission website, the proposed hunt dates do not correlate with the upcoming deer bow-hunting season in the State of Pennsylvania, which limits the days of the hunt and restricts the “bag limit” for each license to one deer per year.

 

5)   HOW ARE NEIGHBORS NOTIFIED ABOUT THE PLANNED HUNT?

 

According to the Township, the neighbors who live immediately next to the affected area are notified by a letter written by the Director of Parks and Recreation.  These letters are usually delivered by hand but are sometimes mailed.  The letter contains the dates as approved by the Board of Commissioners.  Hunters will be in the woods in the morning from 5 AM to 8 or 9 AM.  They also hunt in the afternoon, usually from about 3 PM to just before dark. 

According to neighbors polled in the immediate vicinity of the Preserve, no one recalls ever receiving any such letters from the Township warning them of approved hunting in our neighborhood during the last few years. 

 

6)   WHY WOULD THE TOWNSHIP CONSIDER ALLOWING HUNTING IN A SUBURBAN, FAMILY-ORIENTED NEIGHBORHOOD?

 

The reasons put forth as rationales behind the hunt by the Abington Township Board of Commissioners are: the mitigation of the risk of Lyme Disease, the reduction of the number of traffic accidents involving deer on Valley Road, and general deer herd management. 

·        Lyme Disease—According to Abington Memorial Hospital, there has been no significant change in our Township for Lyme Disease cases. In fact, health care professionals have found educating the general public is the best defense against Lyme Disease. Eradication of deer will not prevent Lyme Disease as deer are not the only carriers.  Unless the Township plans next to hunt squirrels, chipmunks, and other mammals, a controlled hunt of deer will have no effect on the prevalence of Lyme Disease.

·        Traffic Accidents—According to one report obtained from the Abington Police Department, there have been no deer-related accidents in the specified area on Valley Road in the last two years.  According to another report, the accident rate township wide has been reduced by half since deer-hunting began four years ago.  However, when this latter report is reviewed in the context of the last two decades, the occurrence of deer-related accidents is relatively small in this area compared to the Township as a whole.  Additionally, there are other factors such as  two neighbors in the vicinity of the Preserve that engage in private hunting on their own property to reduce the deer population.  The Township has not determined if the reduction of deer accidents—which again is minimal—has been due to these private efforts and other factors or to the ADMA hunts.

·        Deer Herd Management—The deer in this neighborhood are an itinerant population.  That is, the deer tend to move frequently and broadly around the Meadowbrook area due to the abundance of wooded lands available.  Thus, holding a hunt, regardless of length, in one small location will not reduce or control the herd population as deer will migrate to other locations nearby.  The Township has also admitted it does not know the actual size of the deer herd, so it cannot measure the effectiveness of its eradication measures except through accident statistics, which have proven to be minimal.  The Pennsylvania Game Commission clearly outlines steps to be taken to inform and involve residents to determine the appropriate measure to be taken for deer herd management.

 

7)   IS BOW-HUNTING PERMITTED IN OTHER PARKS IN OUR AREA?

 

No.  Horsham and Upper Moreland, for example, have significant open space and park land.  Neither permits hunting.  The Montgomery County Park System does not permit hunting in any of its parks.  Nearby Fort Washington State Park does not permit hunting.

 

Recently, the Township Commissioners voted to permit a 1-day, controlled hunt in Alvethorpe Park for deer herd management.  However, Alvethorpe is a fenced-in park and this hunt will be controlled by the Township and limited to a single day.  On the other hand, the proposed hunt in our neighborhood is:

·        not a controlled environment or situation

·        not confined to a secured, fenced-in area

·        not limited to a single day, week, month, or even a single season

·        located across from a bus stop for elementary school children

·        sanctioned to occur during hours when children will be in the immediate vicinity or waiting for the school bus

·        planned to occur in the midst of a private, family-oriented neighborhood

 

8)   WHAT IS THE INTENDED USE OF THE LAND AT THE BOY SCOUT NATURE STUDY AREA AND GAME PRESERVE?

 

We believe that  area in question is not really a “Boy Scout Nature Study Area".  The nearly 14-acre lot was officially called the "Meadowbrook Nature Preserve", originally intended as a sanctuary for birds and wildlife.  It was gifted to Abington Township in 1947 by Alice Herkness, wife of J. Liddon Pennock of Meadowbrook Farms.  The deed provisions explicitly state that the land, under the custody of Abington Township, is to be used “as a refuge or sanctuary, for the protection and conservation of the birds and other forms of wildlife native to Pennsylvania.”  According to the deed, if the Township violates the provisions in the deed, the land will revert back to the next-of-kin of the Pennock family.

_______________________________________
 

HERE ARE ANSWERS AS RECEIVED FROM THE HEAD OF ABINGTON PARKS AND RECREATION :

The issue of removing deer from both Karebrook Nature Study Area and the Boy Scout Nature Area has been discussed at public meetings for both of the two years the Board has granted permission to hunt there. These are public meetings.

1) Can we get this info on the township website so all who are concerned have a place to go to get the facts ?
1- The Manager's office controls the information that is placed on the website, you should contact them.

2 ) When will the hunts be held ? Throughout hunting season ? Oct to May ? 15 days or more? When are how are hunters notified of the days
2- The Bureau's request is to permit hunting during the entire deer hunting season. This begins September 15th and ends January 26th, 2008. Abington Deer Management is notified only after the Board has approved the plan.

3) When and how are neighbors notified of the specific days & times of the hunt ? Is there an email list one can sign up for. Will there be a mailing with specific dates. Assume newsletter, newspapers, and Channel 43 will be used - but they traditionally reach but a small % of residents.
3- The neighbors who live immediately next to the affected area are notified by a letter written by the Director of Parks and Recreation. These letters are usually hand delivered but are sometimes mailed. The letter contains the dates as approved by the Board. Hunters are usually in the woods from 5 AM and leave usually by 8 or 9 AM. They do hunt in the afternoon, usually from about 3 PM to just before dark.

4) What are the objectives? To thin the heard ? How many are in the herd. How many are we thinning it to and what good will this do ( do we have evidence thinning the herd will reduce any of the problems ? ) Lyme ? Traffic accidents? Nuisance on personal property?
4- The purpose of the hunt is to reduce the size of the herd which will in turn help to reduce the incidence of deer/vehicle accidents. We do not know the size of the herd but we do have statistics regarding deer/vehicle accidents. As evidenced by the reduction in deer/vehicle accidents in the Alverthorpe area, the hunts appear to have helped reduce these conflicts.

5 ) How expensive are the alternative methods and what are the REAL costs of holding the hunt.
5- The expense of the alternatives is very subjective. What is too high for one person may not be a concern for another.
--- The cost to hire the USDA to bring in sharpshooters can be more than $150 per deer.
---Repellents need to be applied on a regular basis and over a large area and can be expensive in both materials and the manpower to apply these chemicals. Additionally, studies ( Swihart et al 1991, Conover 1987, & Conover $ Kania 1988) have found that effectiveness depends on availability of alternative forage. In like manner, purchasing plants that deer do not favor may be effective as long as there are other sources of forage. It has been clearly established that deer will eat almost any forage if they are hungry enough. In any case, repellents need to be applied regularly, which involves manpower and over large areas of open space, is impractical.
---The use of fertility control chemicals has not been approved and, as the US Department of Agriculture has stated, "contraception alone can not reduce overabundant deer populations to healthy levels" (APHIS Wildlife Services, May 2008).

For the proposed hunts in Karebrook and the Boy Scout area it (cost)  is minimal. In the past two years, there has been no police involvement and the signs, for the most part, were placed by members of Abington Deer Management.  The cost of producing the signs is less that $25 and for the signs that I placed, only took me about 20 minutes to tack them to the trees. (comment: Add to that the cost of letters and hand delivering and/or mailing them )

6 ) What is a controlled hunt ? . As far as we know they post signs - What else is done to control it? Where is the entrance and egress ?  Can we assume Pa State Game Commission rules and regulations are known & followed ? Are there other guidelines ?
6- A controlled hunt is one where parameters are set and the hunt is conducted within those parameters. The parameters vary depending on the layout of the area, the number of hunters needed, if the area is fenced or not, and whether rifles, shotguns, or archery is to be used. This is just a short list. I am sure the Pennsylvania Game Commission could fill you in more completely. 
(comment: Am not sure if,as parameters, he means only physical boundaries. )

7 ) Who are the hunters - Are they Abington Township residents ? If I get a hunting license, can I shoot there too? What training do they have - what insurance do they carry? How many of them are allowed in on any given day. If more show up, how will the allowed number be enforced?
7- The hunters approved by the Board, is the Abington Deer Management Association. There were recommended in 1997 due to their experience with archery hunting. As far as I know, most of the members of ADM are residents. Only members of ADM may hunt in the areas approved by the Board. The carry liability insurance in the amount of an aggregate of $2,000,000. The form is on file in this office. The number of hunters in the woods at any one time is controlled by the president or one of the other officers of the ADM.

8 ) What is the car accident rate in the area. One resident believes there have been no deer related accidents in that area in recent years? If we understood correctly, it was reported in a meeting that the township deer accident rate was cut in half in the years since the hunts started. Is that so ? And are these accidents in the area of this preserve?
8- For this information, you need to contact the police department.

9 ) Someone thought there was a regulation/ordinance/rule that prohibited hunting in Abington Township. Can we be made aware of all the laws/regulations that apply in addition to the language of the deed. If we violate the language of the deed are we not risking reverting the property back to another owner that may choose to exercise his option to have that property, where J Liddon Pennock did not ....?
9- I do not believe there is an ordinance in Abington Township that prohibits hunting. I have not seen the original deed for the Boy Scout Nature area. I think that if you consider the public safety factor with the deer/vehicle accidents, removing deer from the Boy Scout Nature area should not affect the Township's ownership of the property in question. However, I am not a lawyer, so that is personal opinion.

10 ) was already answered.

1 1 ) Have our local environmentalists been consulted - Briar Bush etc. ?
11- Prior to 1997 the Bureau engaged the services of wildlife biologist Bryon Shissler. He is well known in the State and has worked with the PA Game Commission on many occasions. He determined that their was an overabundance of deer in this area and recommended multi day hunts. Briar Bush has been consulted. I have personally attended many deer management workshops that were sponsored by the National Audubon Society, Schuylkill Valley Nature Center, and the PA Land Trust Society, all of which have recommended lethal removal of deer as method of controlling overabundant deer.

12 OBJECTIONS that have been voiced to the hunt ---------------------
Neighbors and other interested residents are not notified of when vote is on the agenda or dates of hunts so that they may take extra precautions ( ie if they have children of "free roaming" age" ).

Neighbors have been notifed via letters either hand delivered or mailed. 
( comment: this year only our own efforts brought the letters when the vote was at hand)

13 Signs are posted but - never taken down . As of end of July 07 signs from last season's hunt are reported to be still up .
Untrue! I personally removed the signs both years the hunt has taken place. If you see a sign that was not removed, please let me know and I will take it down immediately. 
( True - as noted above. One must have been missed last season)

13 Do the shooters have their insurance on file at the township ( required by township .......? )
Yes. As answered in #7 above.

14  Whom does it attract ? Locals or people from elsewhere ?
I am unsure of the point of the question. Only ADM hunters are used, so there is no reason for anyone to be attracted to the hunt.
(Comment: hunters seeing others hunting or learning of a hunt are quite likely to be attracted - and might not necessarily register or stop to learn the dates of the hunt, as we know that hunting laws are often disobeyed.)

15 Will people seeing hunts there be encouraged to come back when there is not a controlled hunt going on?
Which people are you speaking of? The neighbors? Both of these areas are overgrown or very swampy. I have never noticed anyone using these areas for recreation. I have spoken to the Boy Scout groups in the area and all of them said that they do not have any activities in these areas.
( Comment : This writer, her two children and her dog have all used that area for recreation/exploration, as have many of the neighbors we have spoken to. Young children are inherently attracted to such spots for "fort building ", following a deer they saw, or other play activities once they are old enough to leave their parents contant supervision. The sign "Boy Scout Study Area invites exploration and suggests that there are interesting things to be studied)

16 Density of the area makes deer hunting an undesirable activity ( there is a reason that there is a term "hunting accident" ) The  safety of children and parents with children(who have not even been notified of the hunt in the past) is an issue. The neighbors here did not buy a house in the State Gamelands and would not suspect such activity
Density in the area does not preclude hunting. As a matter of fact, many private property owners permit hunting on the properties surrounding this area. 
( Comment, that does not speak to the safety issues)

17 This is contrary to the deed of the land and the intent of the gift giver. Their wishes should be respected.
- the land was given to establish a sanctuary for birds and other wildlife.

Not answered
It is possible language directly exists in the deed that addresses the issue of hunting & if so we may jeopardize our ownership of the land. Could the land then revert to a decendant of the giver who would prefer to develop it?
As I responded in question #9, I do not believe the hunt will jeopardize the Township's ownership of the property. I am not a lawyer, so this is a personal opinion.
 (Comment : it was established as a wildlife sanctuary, to protect wildlife.  This is quite contractdictory to that purpose. In spirit, it would be hard to imagine how this does not violate the trust.)

18 Lyme disease is not carried just by deer - by squirrels and other small animals - education & awareness is the best prevention - not trying to kill all the animals that might carry it
Very true. Education alone however, is unlikely to be as effective as education and removal of one of the vectors that is responsible for distribution of the disease. There are also products called "four posters" that can help. They require regular maintenance and are fairly expensive to purchase. When you consider the number that would have to be purchased and maintained, cost could become a factor in their use.
( Comment Simple mouse traps would remove one vector & are not at all expensive to use or maintain and could remove a source that can even come right into your house without the use of poisons, arrows or other dangers)

19 Bow hunting is not a humane way to thin a herd. If you needed to put your pet down you would never in a
million years think of letting your pet loose in the preserve & having people shoot at it ( though it
would surely be cheaper than the bill from the vet)

Bow hunting is more humane than being struck by an automobile, starvation, freezing to death, and/or dying from diseases that are a result of over population. Since pets do not live in this type of environment, your pet analogy is completely out of context. 
( Comment: I disagree :  pets also get hit by automobiles, die from diseases and  are sometimes lost or left out to freeze - I still would not choose to shoot  any animal with an arrow if a more humane methods exist.)

20 When deer are a nuisance on your property, neighbors can learn to plant shrubs and plants that are not likely to attract them - reducing their problem greatly
I answered this point in question #5. Even if the neighbors were to establish plants that deer tend not to eat, the deer would then be forced to forage further afield thus creating the possibility of more deer/vehicle accidents. Eventually, deer would begin to feed on less favorable forage which would then bring them full circle where they are eating plant material they previously eschewed.

(Comment : We thank Mr. Wendell for taking the time to answer the questions . )

 

July 2nd, 2007  Public Affairs -  Residents were in attendance to oppoise the  hunt at the Valley Rd &  Karebrook location - The hunt discussion  was put off until a separate meeting with residents could be had - Possibly the issue will then be ready to bring to the Sept Public Affairs  Meeting. If we understand it correctly, there will be various hunts throughout deer hunt season ( possibly as many as 15 ) at this location.

 
June 14th
Alverthorpe deer hunt  approved for a date in October  at this meeting.  One day hunt.

June 7, 2007
 At the June 6th Public Affairs Meeting, the Valley Rd hunt discussion was put off ( possibly til the next month  we'll try to let you know when we find out - call your Commissioner to be notified directly ) 
The main reason that a hunt was chosen as the preferred method was financial, if I understood correctly.  The cost of removing deer with other methods could run as much as $200 per deer.  

June 6, 2004  7:30 pm
PA4. Controlled Hunt in Alverthorpe Park
Motion to approve two weekday dates (one to be used as an alternate in
case of inclement weather) for a one day, controlled deer hunt to take
place in Alverthorpe Park during the Fall 2007 season.

Controlled Deer Hunt on Township Property Along Valley Road between Washington Lane and Mill Road

Motion to approve controlled hunting on Township properties on Valley
Road between Washington Lane and Mill Road (Boy Scout Nature Study
Area and Karebrook) for the complete 2007 -2008 hunting season.

 

______________________________

Some related informational sites about animal rights or alternatives to a hunt....
Please remember, on the Abington Citizens Network all views will be presented, whether pro or con to help us all understand the issue in the fullest.


www.RPAforAll.org - an Abington resident maintains this site
http://mobilizationforanimals.org/wildlife.html
http://www.noasavesanimals.org/wildlifeconta.htm

 

Questions that need answers .....

Some suggested that Bowhunting is allowed on some private property (such as  near the Wissahickon Watershed ) but not baiting. Is baiting  allowed or not and will it be used here?

Someone suggested the fertility control vaccine, PZP or Porcine Zona Pelucida is a protein not a chemical and cannot pass through the food chain. They thought it may have been  authorized by the FDA but soon, if not already, will be regulated by the EPA.

 

Someone  suggests that  Bryon P. Shissler, the wildlife biologist,  is President of Natural Resource Consultants, Inc. and Director of The Ecosystem Management Project at State College and that he was once on the governor's sportsmen's advisory council. The only method he suggests is lethal and they believe  his final deer report on deer in the Wissahickon has been highly criticized by various professionals
 


 


__________________________
 

 

 



    Please feel free to send your  information to us  and please be sure to  tell us about any information you believe to be incorrect -   contact us 

 

 


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Abington Township, with John Spiegelman in charge, revamped the entire Township website at the end of 2015 and broke all the links to the information we had archived on this site for you.   In 2017, Manager Richard Manfredi arrived and assigned someone not qualified to redo the entire website again. They not only broke all archived links we had reinstated, but made everything as impossible to find as they could. Nearly all of our comments and recommedations to fix the Township website have been wholly ignored.

So we do need volunteers to work together helping the Township create a site that is functional and accessible.  We will be reinstating links as we find them....if the data is still available. So... please let us know if you find a broken link. Send us the URL of the link  and the name of the page it is on, and if we can, we'll reinstate it.
Thanks for the help.

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