Fish and Game Commission Proposes Public Use Changes to Wildlife Areas, Public Lands, and Ecological Reserves

The California Fish and Game Commission (Commission) is a Gubernatorially-appointed body with regulatory authority over the state’s public lands and wildlife conservation. In January, the Commission released a regulatory proposal to make public use changes to California Department of Fish and Wildlife’s lands, including designating recently acquired lands and removing properties the Department no longer possesses or manages.

The proposal includes designating one property as a wildlife area, seven properties as ecological reserves, and making other site-specific changes that generally impact public access and/or public safety on these managed lands in various RCRC member counties, including Inyo, Mono, San Luis Obispo, Napa and Sonoma counties.

The Commission held one public hearing on this proposal in February, and will hold another at its April 16th hearing at 9am via teleconference/webinar to accept comments. The agenda can be viewed here.

 

WIR Conference Gathering Cancelled - Stay Tuned for Alternative Dates

Due to the rapidly changing coronavirus (COVID-19) situation across the nation, after painstakingly thorough consideration, the 2020 National Association of Counties’ (NACo) Western Interstate Region (WIR) Conference scheduled to take place at Tenaya Lodge at Yosemite, has been cancelled. The letter from WIR President, Supervisor Kevin Cann of Mariposa County, to the WIR Board of Directors may be viewed here.

A tremendous program was planned, and the conference team is exploring alternative options for members to utilize, including the possibility of the 2021 Conference being held in California. We encourage you to keep the WIR conference dates on your calendar. And, please plan to participate in virtual meetings and upcoming WIR workshops that may be offered as a partial replacement for Mariposa County in 2020.

For the latest WIR Conference updates, click here.