Sessions focus on elk in Catskills in N.Y.

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Sessions focus on elk in Catskills.

By: JAY BRAMAN JR., DailyFreedom.com Correspondent August 06, 2001

Supporters of an effort to bring 100 elk to the Catskills to see if a Western species can thrive in this area are holding a series of public workshops to exchange information about the plan.

After two years of work on the part of a handful of area residents and a national sportsmen's organization, the quest continues. A Boston-based firm has been hired by the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation to conduct the required environmental review of the project. If the firm can convince the state Department of Environmental Conservation that bringing elk to the area would be a positive move, the department is expected to permit it.
Bill Geer, the foundation's vice president for conservation programs, will travel from the organization's headquarters in Montana to run the workshops. The first takes place Monday, Aug. 13, at Tri-Valley School in Grahamsville.

Other workshops will take place Aug. 14 at the Onteora Junior/Senior High School in Boiceville, Aug. 15 at the Andes Fire Hall in Delaware County and Aug. 16 at the Hunter-Tannersville School in Tannersville. All of the workshops will take place from 4-9 p.m.

"We scheduled these workshops to bring the project to the public and the public into the environmental review process," Geer said. He added the consultants handling the review process will be at the sessions to hear the public's reaction firsthand.

The workshops are not required under state law, but supporters said they think they are a good idea. "We want to put 150 percent effort into the environmental work, and being face to face with the Catskills residents will help us immensely," Geer said.

Since the spring of 1999 supporters have been doing a lot of talking all through the Catskills. They have been going from town to town drumming up municipal backing to realize the plans outlined in a 4-year-old study that determined that elk, which roamed the Catskills until the late 19th century, could once again live successfully in the region. Support has come from such towns as Olive and Shandaken in Ulster County and Hunter and Jewett in Greene County.

While support was easily gained in some towns, communities such as Olive and Rochester had officials who needed some convincing before finally giving their approval last summer.

Olive officials wondered what impact elk might have on the deer population. Rochester town Councilman William Carroll said he feared cars crashing into the 700-pound animals and elk devouring everything from shrubbery to siding to get their daily fill.

Elk backers admit the review may even determine that elk are really not as fit for the area as the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation has maintained.

All concerns raised at the workshops will be given to the Department of Environmental Conservation, which is the lead agency in the review and has the power to permit the project or reject it. Ken Kloeber, the Elk Foundation's environmental consultant, said, "I was impressed that the foundation wanted to go this extra mile and will hold these public workshops when it was not required. We could have left it at the written comment stage, but I think that this will be much more meaningful to the public and the project."

 

[Arrowhead]

You know the only problem I see about this is. If they did re-ntroduce elk to the area and they did thrive. Once car/elk accidents started to occurr there would be hell to pay. Since the area in question is only about 80/90 miles from NYC and the weekend tourist traffic dramaticlly increases. I could see problems arrising.

The area isn't what is was in the late 19th century when elk were last in that area.

I still think it would be great to see them reintroduced. I just think maybe some thing should be left as is. Or maybe the Adirondecks would be a better choice.

 

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Catskill elk plan raises concern

By Jay Braman Jr., Correspondent August 16, 2001

BOICEVILLE N.Y.- Curious visitors trickled in and out of the Onteora Middle-Senior High School cafeteria earlier this week, seeking information and offering opinions about a plan to bring 100 elk to the Catskills.

Representatives of the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, which sponsored the Tuesday evening session, milled about the room, hoping for a chance to get the word out on the plan formed two years ago after a study found the Catskills a suitable habitat for the large mammals, which can weigh up to 700 pounds.

At times, there were only one or two visitors at the session. Ken Kloeber, the environmental consultant retained to prepare an environmental study of the project for the state Department of Environmental Conservation, was overheard trying to convince listeners that he and the foundation are well aware of the challenges elk may face.

Asked about possible conflicts between deer and elk, Kloeber said: "There is going to be competition for food. We know that. But elk are larger, they can browse higher."

One woman who would not identify herself said she was at the session to learn about the project. And while her concerns were largely environmental, she said supporters of the project look more like hunters than conservationists.

When the project first was outlined two years ago, Department of Environmental Conservation spokesman Glenn Cole told the foundation that if the project moves forward, no one would be allowed to hunt elk for a very long time.

Foundation volunteer Wallace John was responsible for calming fears about potential human/elk conflicts. The plan, he said, is a simple one: "If you keep the elk as far away from humans as possible, it's better. If they get too close, we will live trap them and move them."

Asked what mechanisms are in place to ensure the foundation would continue to bear responsibility for the project after the initial launch, Bill Geer, vice president of the foundation's conservation program, explained that the foundation already has several elk restoration projects under way across the United States and remains involved with their maintenance.

Geer said the foundation not only has staff and volunteers to deal with matters of feeding and possible human/elk conflicts, but it also supplies funding to local agencies to assist in the program maintenance and monitoring.

In this case, he said, funding would be given to a branch of the state Department of Environmental Conservation.

"We will fund this wildlife challenge," he said.

All concerns raised at the workshops will be given to the Department of Environmental Conservation, which is the lead agency in the review and has the power to permit or reject the project.

The foundation will have another public session from 4-9 p.m. today at Hunter-Tannersville High School in Tannersville.