FILING - 07/10/2008
Basis and Purpose
Chapter 9 – Division Properties

Basis and Purpose:

These regulations amend Chapter 9 - Division Properties of the Colorado Wildlife Commission regulations, as part of an annual review of Chapter 5 - Waterfowl.

In recent years, some individuals have expressed concerns about declines in the quality of duck hunting on State Wildlife Areas along the South Platte River corridor, where most of Colorado’s annual duck hunting activity and duck harvest occurs.  Some have called for more restrictive hunting regulations and creation of refuges in time and space as a means to improve duck hunting success.  The Division has implemented a variety of property-specific hunting regulations on State Wildlife Areas, but no formal analysis has been conducted on the relationship between hunting regulations and hunter success, activity, and satisfaction, across SWAs with a range of habitat conditions.  

In 2007, the Division convened a South Platte Waterfowl Hunting Panel to develop recommendations for improving the quality of duck hunting along the South Platte corridor.  The Panel recommended formally evaluating the relationship between hunting regulations and hunter success and activity on different types of habitats.  Division personnel recommended conducting the evaluation on pairs of SWAs that represent three broad types of habitat conditions: shallow impoundments off the river channel (Jackson Lake, Red Lion), small properties on the river channel (Atwood, Overland Trail), and large properties on the river channel (Bravo, Brush/Jean K. Tool).  A set of relatively restrictive regulations is to be applied to one of the properties in each pair, and a set of relatively unrestricted regulations is to be applied to the other property in each pair.  These regulations are intended to remain in place for 2-3 years, and then the regulations will be switched for each pair for 2-3 more years.

Check stations will be established at all study properties and staffed by Division personnel throughout the duck season each year.  All waterfowl and small game hunters are required to report to the check station before leaving the property, whether or not they have harvested any game.  Information gathered at check stations will be used to measure (1) ducks harvested/hunter, (2) total duck harvest, (3) hunter use patterns, and (4) hunter satisfaction at each property each year.  These measures will be compared between Restricted and Unrestricted properties, and among habitat types.  Regulations associated with this evaluation have been modified on the properties as depicted in the following table:

 	Hunting Season Regulations
 (R = Restricted, U = Unrestricted)	
Type	Property	2008	2009	2010	2011	2012	2013	
Off river channel	Jackson Lake	R	R	R	U	U	U	
	Red Lion	U	U	U	R	R	R	
On-channel
small property	Overland Trail	R	R	R	U	U	U	
	Atwood	U	U	U	R	R	R	
On-channel large property	Bravo	R	R	R	U	U	U	
	Jean K. Tool & Brush	U	U	U	R	R	R	
 
Furthermore, these regulations have been modified to allow limited waterfowl hunting from vessels on Jackson Lake and Jumbo Reservoir.  In recent years, some individuals have expressed concerns about declines in the quality of duck hunting along the South Platte River corridor, where most of Colorado’s annual duck hunting activity and duck harvest occurs.  Recent studies indicate that although large numbers of ducks may be present during the hunting season, many ducks roost throughout the day on large reservoirs near the river, where they are inaccessible to shoreline hunters.  Thus, until these reservoirs freeze in winter, these reservoirs serve as refuges during the hunting season.  These regulations are intended to increase recreational opportunity and periodically disturb ducks loafing on reservoirs in order to cause more ducks to move to the river channel and other wetland habitats on public and private lands.  In 2007, the Division convened a South Platte Waterfowl Hunting Panel to develop recommendations for improving the quality of duck hunting along the South Platte corridor.  The Panel recommended that the Division implement managed boat hunting on reservoirs on a limited basis.  The reservation system is intended to be used primarily to enable the Division to track hunter participation in these boat hunting opportunities and contact hunters if reservoirs freeze and conditions become unsafe before the close of the boat hunting season.

The statutory authority for these regulations can be found in § 24-4-103, C.R.S., and the state Wildlife Act, §§ 33-1-101 to 33-6-209, C.R.S., specifically including, but not limited to: §§ 33-1-101, 102, 104, 105, 106-108, 115, and 121; §§ 33-2-104, 105, 106, and 107; § 33-3-104; §§ 33-4-101, 102, 102.5, 103, 116, 116.5, 117, and 119; § 33-5.5-102; and §§ 33-6-107, 109, 112, 113, 113.5, 114, 114.5, 117, 119, 120, 121, 124, 127, 128, 129, 131, 205, 206, 207, and 208. 

EFFECTIVE DATE - THESE REGULATIONS SHALL BECOME EFFECTIVE SEPTEMBER 1, 2008 AND SHALL REMAIN IN FULL FORCE AND EFFECT UNTIL REPEALED, AMENDED OR SUPERSEDED.

APPROVED AND ADOPTED BY THE WILDLIFE COMMISSION OF THE STATE OF COLORADO THIS 10th DAY OF JULY, 2008.
APPROVED:
Robert W. Bray
Chairman

ATTEST:
Timothy R. Glenn
Secretary