Here are a couple links to the stories.
The Olympian
http://www.theolympian.com/southsound/story/846314.htmlAt one point there were over 90 comments on this article.
News Tribune
http://www.thenewstribune.com/updates/v-printerfriendly/story/736986.htmlTacoma, WA - Monday, May 11, 2009 < Back to Regular Story Page
Homeowners want to ban duck hunting throughout Eld Inlet
CHRISTIAN HILL; The Olympian
Last updated: May 10th, 2009 07:34 AM (PDT)
A finger of water framed by evergreen shores, Eld Inlet has attracted homeowners who cherish its natural beauty and relative solitude.
In recent seasons, hunters on boats also have come to enjoy the area. It’s a popular spot for scoter ducks, which power underwater to catch and feast on shellfish, primarily mussels. Waterfowl hunting is legal on the inlet at certain times of the year.
More than 60 residents, including some from outside of the area, have signed a petition submitted to Thurston County seeking a controlled shooting zone that would ban hunting throughout the inlet. They say the shooting is a public-safety risk and hurts their quality of life.
Thurston County commissioners are considering the residents’ request, which has fueled a debate that pits homeowners’ rights against the rights of people using public waterways for recreation.
“It’s not a new issue for us,” said Don Kraege, waterfowl section manager for the state Department of Fish and Wildlife. “We have similar issues throughout the Sound as it’s become more developed.”
Neighbors rallied to the cause after one morning in January, near the end of duck-hunting season, that one of them characterized as a “duck massacre.”
The blast of shotgun fire was heard almost nonstop for two hours. Frightened dogs scattered and hid, the residents said. A resident on the inlet’s eastern shore, which is designated a controlled shooting zone, said shot rained on his home.
“It sounded like the Fourth of July,” said Warren Arnold, who has lived in the area for more than 50 years.
Neighbors also worry about the hunting’s effect on Puget Sound’s health, as ducks are an important part of the ecosystem.
Gail Sheikhizadeh, who lives on the waterfront, collected a bag of spent shotgun shells that washed ashore and worries how they might be polluting the water. She cites a study by the SeaDoc Society that found the population of scoter ducks has declined 50 percent in the past 25 years and that hunting could hurt the long-term health of these birds in four counties, including Thurston.
The SeaDoc Society, which is funded by a public-private partnership, conducts and sponsors research in the inland waters of the Northwest.
The issue’s roots could be traced to Ken Gruver, who moved to the area two years ago and began hunting with about a half-dozen co-workers and acquaintances. He said the group hunts on the inlet six to eight times a year and goes out on weekday mornings to avoid disrupting neighbors.
Kraege said that two years ago, his agency received a flood of calls from residents about hunting on Eld Inlet. Enforcement officers were dispatched to check on the hunters and determined they all were licensed and abiding by the rules, he said.
Gruver, a certified firearms instructor, said he’d be surprised if there are other hunters.
“We sure go out of our way to make sure that we are as safe as we can be,” he said. “A shotgun doesn’t have a very long range. It’s a pretty short-range gun. Boy, it would be hard for us to say we’re raining shot on people.”
Shotguns can injure or kill waterfowl within a range of 100 yards. The shots can go farther, although at a decreasing velocity, Kraege said.
Gruver said he thinks the real issue for neighbors is the noise. If that’s the case, he said, there should be regulations outlawing other nuisances he has experienced while living on the inlet – loud stereos, backyard parties and chain saws.
“Where do you draw the line?” he asked.
He said the dozens of ducks that neighbors saw during the “duck massacre” one described could have been decoys that the hunters float in the water to attract their targets.
COUNTY HAS 44 RESTRICTED-SHOOTING ZONES
Thurston County has 44 no-shooting zones and controlled shooting zones. The county relies on authority under state law that allows cities and counties to restrict the firing of guns “where there is a reasonable likelihood that humans, domestic animals or property will be jeopardized.”
Commissioners created the first zone in 1956 and the most recent one nearly 15 years ago. They have avoided creating zones in recent years because of budget constraints (the sheriff’s office enforces the county regulations), state laws prohibiting discharge of firearms being enforced, and the long and contentious process that such requests invite.
Commissioners did create a controlled shooting zone on Mud Bay and the eastern shore of Eld Inlet in 1987 that bars all discharge of firearms except for self-defense, putting down an animal or target practice. It’s unknown why the southwestern shore wasn’t included.
As an alternative to zones, the county has asked the parties to work out their differences through dispute resolution. In this case, county staff members recommend holding a community workshop to hear the differing opinions before determining whether to expand the controlled shooting zone on the eastern shore or create a new regulated zone.
TAYLOR SHELLFISH ENTERS FRAY
The issue has drawn the attention of Taylor Shellfish Farms.
Bill Dewey, a company spokesman, wrote to the commissioners to rebut an accusation by one concerned citizen that Taylor has been shooting the ducks to protect its oysters.
Dewey wrote that Paul Taylor, one of the company’s owners, and his wife, Gail, live on the inlet, and she allowed hunters to launch from their boat ramp as long as they didn’t interfere with company operations.
He wrote that the hunters are independent of Taylor and, as far as the company knows, they are properly licensed and complying with all rules.
“In Eld, the ducks actually provide a service to us by consuming mussels that set and foul our oyster beds and oysters,” he wrote. “We look forward to their annual arrival.”
The company does shoot guns to scare off birds and ducks, according to the sheriff’s office, which said deputies were dispatched 21 times for weapons complaints in and around the inlet from March 2008 to April 2009. Six times, the complaints were about hunting.
Capt. Dave Johnson wrote in a memo that if commissioners move forward with a zone, it won’t be enforceable until the 2010-11 hunting season so hunters can receive proper notice.
He raised concerns about deputies being able to investigate violations on the water without immediate access to a watercraft.
“We cannot govern how and when Fish and Wildlife would respond to these complaints so the citizens may still be frustrated,” he wrote.
Christian Hill is a reporter at The Olympian and can be reached at 360-754-5427 or chill@theolympian.com"
Originally published: May 10th, 2009 07:34 AM (PDT)
