With the Department of Environmental Conservation's recent posting of the steadily declining annual hunting and fishing license sales came a not-so-subtle wake-up call for all people who use and enjoy the New York outdoors. Who's going to foot the annual bill for maintaining and conserving these natural resources?
For many years, income generated by these licenses, fees and the special taxes on hunting and fishing gear purchases generated sufficient money via the NYS Conservation Fund to fund the majority of the DEC's natural resource divisions and programs. However, this year the Conservation Fund is being projected to experience a $7M to $10M shortfall, and as license sales and hunter-fisher participation in the state continues to decline, it will only get worse.
As reported in last week's column, one of the biggest weaknesses of the DEC since its formation in 1970 has been the steady succession of appointed commissioners, all of whom have had little or no experience in natural resources management or values, both in financial as well as recreational terms. The focus of the DEC has been almost entirely on environmental rather than conservation. In some cases where natural resources were involved it's leaned toward preservation more than conservation. Case in point are the "forever wild" areas of the state forests and park lands.
The old saying "If it ain't broke, don't fix it" no longer applies the current structure and operation of the DEC. Major changes in the state's demographics and social personalities have occurred over the past four decades which have not been reflected in how the department operates. It should no longer throw conservation and environmental policies, funding and programs into the same mixing pot because it just isn't working effectively any more. Using basically many of the same programs and personnel to do both environmental and natural resource conservation projects may seem the most economical approach, but in reality it results in one failing to get the attention it requires. In this case it's our natural resources, which have seen increasingly less prioritizing being placed on them as environmental issues have dominated.
As we lose a generation of young residents who are less interested in hunting, fishing and other "traditional" outdoor activities that generate millions of dollars to state coffers, DEC and the state have steadfastly ignored the situation and done little or nothing to improve it. New York is one of the few states that refuses to allow young hunters to be introduced and mentored at an early enough age to be potentially recruited into the outdoor activities they could enjoy for a lifetime. In every state where youngsters are introduced to firearms safety and hunting at an earlier age than in New York, these young people have the best safety record of any age group, and many of these states are enjoying steady or increasing license sales. But New York has stubbornly held to its minimum age of 16 (14 for small game) for young hunters and as a result the mid-teens have already been lured by computer games and other activities, and the results of this are showing up in license sales.
Adding to the loss of younger outdoor enthusiasts is the steady loss of longtime but aging outdoor enthusiasts. As the bulk of sportsmen and women in the state have aged, the DEC has done little to motivate them to continue their activities. Small game hunting and local fishing were once the cornerstone activities of the majority of licensed sportsmen and women in the state, but shrinking opportunities have changed that. Now, other than deer and turkey hunting and Great Lakes fishing, the quality of small game habitat and access to local quality fishing, other than freshly stocked trout, has declined to a point that many adults no longer bother. Quality habitat for small game and other wildlife on public lands has been largely ignored, as has better cooperative access approaches to fishing waters.
New York has a wealth of natural resource opportunities that are being allowed to deteriorate because the DEC's priorities remain so focused on environmental issues. From air and water emissions to landfills to recycling, these are, necessarily, the primary focus of the DEC. Caring for its millions of acres of public land, habitat, fish and wildlife has been gradually nudged aside as funding and program priorities are diverted toward environmental quality ones. Now, battling alien exotics that have entered our waters, serious introduced diseases such as chronic wasting disease (CWD) and viral hemorrhagic septicemia virus (VHS) that threaten our wildlife and fish are eating up more funding and program efforts, leaving even less funds and personnel for natural resource maintenance and conservation.
If you don't hunt or fish or trap, you may believe this won't affect you. But if you hike, camp, canoe, kayak, cross-country ski, nature or bird watch, or partake in any activity involving our state forests and waters, it eventually will. Why? Because it all boils down to money - or more correctly, the lack of it.
Let's look at how the non-consumptive use of our state lands and parks has changed since DEC's birth in 1970. We've added thousands of acres of public lands, much of it in the northern part of the state. That means added management and funding are required as the acreage has grown. However, other than hunters, fishers and trappers, non-consumptive users of these lands generally aren't required to pay any additional fee for their activities (snowmobilers' costs go into the General Fund, and not the Conservation Fund). As the number of hikers, skiers, snowmobilers and wildlife watchers has increased, the DEC hasn't been able to keep pace with care and maintenance of the properties, especially the trails and wilderness camping areas. So volunteer groups are often the ones that must do the bulk of the work, but they, too, are an aging and shrinking group.
As the state has been forced to dip into the General Fun increasingly more to cover these shortfalls, taxpayers who seldom or don't benefit from natural resource activities will eventually start complaining. So what would be the next logical step? Raise funds by charging non-consumptive users an annual use fee. What's an alternative? Separate DEC into two departments – environmental (DEC) and conservation (DNR). Since everyone benefits from solid environmental management, that funding would come from the General (tax) Fund. Conservation funding could then come from all user licenses, fees and applicable sales taxes and be dedicated to natural resources management and programs.
If we stay the present course, and do nothing, matters will only get worse, and no one will be happy. New York has reached a crossroads, and the time when it could use a huge bureaucratic blanket to effectively cover both its environmental and natural resources challenges has long since passed.