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Scroll down for prior alerts ACTION ALERT: 10/24/2012 - Hunting and Trapping in Wisconsin's Parks There will be hunting and trapping in almost every state park beginning January 1, 2013. Exactly how much, when, and where depends on your input to the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (WDNR) in upcoming listening sessions or via email. Act 168, or the Sporting Heritage Bill, was passed by the legislature and signed by the governor earlier this year. It expands the current hunting of deer and turkeys in some parks to the hunting and trapping of all huntable and trappable species in nearly every one of our parks. While Act 168 allows hunting when any season is open, the Wisconsin DNR is proposing that hunting in parks be allowed "only" from October 15 through the Thursday prior to the Memorial Day weekend.For more information, see the WDNR news article and public hearing notice at http://dnr.wi.gov/news/BreakingNews_Lookup.asp?id=2538 WDNR is asking that you provide input on how to implement the law, not the law itself – which has already been passed. Please attend a listening session if possible. If not, please send comments by Friday, Nov. 23 to DNRWisconsinParks@wisconsin.gov or Wisconsin State Parks – Act 168, PO Box 7921, Madison, WI 53707-7921. All listening sessions begin at 6:30 p.m. Attendees that would like to speak or submit written comments should sign up at the door on arriving at the session. ACTION ALERT: 08/14/2012 - Help Preserve Badger Ammunition Grassland Birds This is your opportunity for input to Badger Army Ammunition Plant DNR Master Planning See MAS letter to WDNR for more info. **At a minimum, please submit a brief email supporting grassland bird conservation** (additional talking points below) to: Diane Brusoe (Diane.Brusoe@wisconsin.gov), DNR Planner - LF/6 PO Box 7921, Madison, WI 53707-7921 prior to Friday, Aug. 17. It is important that we help set the course now for the Master Plan. Please take a few minutes to weigh in with your comments. BACKGROUND INFO - At the July 30 Open House, many advocated for recreation activitiesthat could compromise grassland bird conservation at the Sauk PrairieRecreation Area. We need your voice in support of grassland birds! The 7,354 acre Badger Army Ammunition Plant, south of Baraboo and Devil's Lake State Park in Sauk County, presents an unprecedented opportunity to manage for grassland and shrubland birds in one of the largest, unfragmented landscapes in southern Wisconsin. These groups of birds are declining faster than any other groups of birds in Wisconsin and need our help. ** Grassland/shrubland habitat and grassland/shrubland birds should be the primary focus at DNR's Sauk Prairie Recreation Area within the greater Badger Army Ammunition Plant (BAAP). Bird species that have been found here include Eastern and Western meadowlarks, Bobolink, Upland Sandpiper, Orchard Oriole, Bell’s Vireo, Dickcissel, and Clay-colored, Vesper, Savannah, Field, Grasshopper sparrows, and more. Many of these species are sensitive to habitat fragmentation and need very large blocks of habitat to successfully breed. ** Any proposed recreation must be nonmotorized, low-impact, and compatible with grassland bird conservation. Ecotourism, especially birding, is a growing interest that will benefit this entire area of the state economically. Managing the property primarily for birds and other wildlife would be very low cost, especially when compared to development for more active recreation. Besides more typical uses such as hunting, trapping, and hiking; other uses being proposed include "rocketeering, shooting ranges, geocaching, dog parks, paintball, community gardens, and other recreation activities not typically found on Department lands" (see DNR's Regional & Property Analysis - link below). A Wisconsin Conservation Congress question on the 2011 Spring Hearing questionnaire asked whether there should be trail access for dogsleds in winter and wheeled rigs the rest of the year; herding, tracking, and terrier trials; year round training; dog shows; obedience trials; field trials; and much more at BAAP. MORE INFO - Badger Army Ammunition Plant was decommissioned by the U.S. Department of the Defense in 1997. In 2000, Sauk County created a 21-member Badger Reuse Committee, which finalized and endorsed the Badger Reuse Plan in 2001 (see https://www.co.sauk.wi.us/sites/default/files/fileattachments/baap-finalreport.pdf). Ownership of the former BAAP was slated for transfer to the DNR, Ho-Chunk Nation, USDA Dairy Forage Research Center, and Bluffview Sanitary District. In 2002, the Natural Resources Board established the Sauk Prairie Recreation Area. Parcels totaling 3,800-acres were transferred to DNR in 2010 and 2011, and DNR is now developing a new master plan for the site. See the Regional & Property Analysis under "Planning Documents" at http://dnr.wi.gov/master_planning/SaukPrairie/. Also see planning documents, maps, and more at: http://dnr.wi.gov/topic/lands/masterplanning/SaukPrairie/ Link to the 2001 Badger Reuse Plan, which charts a direction for the Plant: https://www.co.sauk.wi.us/sites/default/files/fileattachments/baap-finalreport.pdf ACTION ALERT: 07/31/2012 - Help Set The Conservation Agenda - This is your opportunity to help set the conservation agenda for the next 2-year legislative session in Wisconsin! What are the issues that you care about? Please attend the meeting and let us know. Monday, August 6 from 6:30 to 7:45 p.m. at the Goodman South Madison Branch Library, 2222 S. Park St., Madison. Madison Audubon is one of dozens of like-minded organizations that has participated every two years. See the Wisconsin League of Conservation Voters website to Register. If you have any questions, please let me know. Karen Etter Hale, 608/255-BIRD (2473) ACTION ALERT: 07/10/2012 - Help Madison Audubon Win A Truck - Madison Audubon has a chance to win a new pickup truck, and we really need your help and the help of everyone you know to pull it off! Click here for more info and a link to Pledge to Vote ACTION ALERT: 02/02/2012: Sandhill Crane Hunt Alert Contact your legislators as soon as possible and let them know what you think about the proposal to open a hunting season on Sandhill Cranes in Wisconsin. Find your legislators and their contact information here: http://legis.wisconsin.gov/w3asp/waml/waml.aspx. On Tuesday, Jan. 31, Representative Joel Kleefisch distributed a bill, LRB 3173/3, for co-sponsorship with a deadline of February 7 for legislators to sign on. The bill would establish a Sandhill Crane hunting season in Wisconsin. As in previous years when this issue came up, Audubon continues to be opposed to a hunt in Wisconsin. In the mid-1930s only an estimated 25 Sandhill Crane pairs remained in Wisconsin, causing Aldo Leopold to lament their probable loss in "A Marshland Elegy", a chapter in A Sand County Almanac. Since then, with many decades of hard work by hunters, federal and state agencies, and environmental groups, including Audubon, to protect and restore thousands of acres of wetlands, cranes have prospered. Is hunting warranted for every species we've brought back from the brink? The main argument for establishing a hunt, besides wanting another species to hunt, is to help farmers who suffer crop damage from cranes. Cranes are very good at going down corn rows, pulling out each kernel or young plant. Hunting, however, would only shift the birds to other farmers' fields. A better solution, which has been available for several years, is to coat the kernels with nontoxic anthraquinone (AQ), which tastes bad and deters cranes from eating corn – in any fields. Sandhills may still be in the fields, but eating waste grain, insects, or rodents. See http://www.savingcranes.org/crop-damage-discussion.html for more information. For additional information and possible talking points, see the Feb. 1 Associated Press article in the Pioneer Press (Twin Cities): http://www.twincities.com/ci_19868737 ACTION ALERT: 09/17/2011: Dane County Board - Please Help Support Continued Bonding for the Conservation Fund Please take action on behalf of our quality of life in Dane County. CRANES (Capital Region Advocacy Network for Environmental Sustainability) alert: Bonding for Important Conservation(and Non-Conservation) Capital Projects, Dane County Board Meeting (vote) Thursday, Sept. 15, 2011 - 7 p.m. City/County Building Room 261 (Martin Luther King, Jr., Drive) Please register/speak at Thursday's Dane County Board meeting if possible, or call or e-mail your supervisor (contact info at http://www.countyofdane.com/board/supervisors.aspx). Please also send an e-mail to all supervisors (county_board_recipients@co.dane.wi.us). Urge them to authorize Fiscal Year 2001 (FY11) bonding for capital projects for conservation (Resolution 122) and non-conservation (Resolution 107). Background: Resolution 107 authorizes bonding for all capital projects except the Conservation Fund. Last year, in response to demands of conservative supervisors who theatened otherwise to kill all bonding, Conservation Funding was separated off for the first time. This is a terrible precedent, and we need to show conservatives that their new tactic is a loser, by advocating for passage of both Resolution 107 and Resolution 122. CRANES (Capital Region Advocacy Network for Environmental Sustainability) – Madison Audubon is a founding member - and its partners worked hard last year to restore Conservation Fund bonding for FY11 to $5 million. Resolution 122 would authorize activation for the last $1.7 million for acquisition of parcels in the Upper Mud Lake and Lake Waubesa areas for public land. What isn't used this year would carry over to FY12. Dane County staff has confirmed that this bonding will have absolutely no effect on spending under the state levy cap in this or any future year. Because debt service is exempt from the levy cap, this spending will not in any way cause layoffs or human service cuts - ever. For more information, contact: Caryl Terrell 608-833-8828; 608-213.4648 cell; CarylTerrell@charter.net or Jon Becker 608-469-0316 cell; 608-242-8525; JonBecker@aol.com CRANES (Capital Region Advocacy Network for Environmental Sustainability - http://cranesinc.org/) is a regional public policy voice for our partner organizations and their many members, including: Earth/Art® Resources, Friends of Cherokee Marsh, Friends of Pheasant Branch Conservancy, League of Women Voters ~ Dane County, Madison Audubon Society, Sierra Club ~ Four Lakes Group, Western Dane Coalition for Smart Growth & Environment, West Waubesa Preservation Coalition Please thank these supervisors for past support of conservation funding. Remind them of the decision last fall of the full Board to authorize spending for the Conservation Fund. Ask them if they will honor the commitment to the environment on which they ran for office, by voting YES on Thursday night.
Also thank these supervisors for past support of some conservation funding. Remind them of the decision last fall of the full Board to authorize spending for the Conservation Fund. Ask them if they will commit to voting YES on Thursday night.
Tell these supervisors that you have noticed their repeated failure to support conservation funding. Remind them of the decision last fall of the full Board to authorize spending for the Conservation Fund.
********Thanks once again for taking action. ACTION ALERT: ATC Transmission Line Could Split Goose Pond Sanctuary Things You Can Do:
Information about the Badger Coulee Transmission Line Project is available on the ATC website at www.BadgerCoulee.com. The map for Columbia County is at http://www.atc-projects.com/documents/ColumbiaCounty11X17.pdf (see southeast corner of map to find Goose Pond and the Arlington area) Reasons to oppose a large powerline through Madison Audubon Society's Goose Pond Sanctuary -
04/19/2010 Alert: Wisconsin State Budget 2011-12 ALERT - Please contact your legislators! Please contact your state senator and representative and members of the Joint Finance Committee about the 2011-2012 Wisconsin State Budget. It's very important that you share your story or stories about the importance of Wisconsin's natural resources to you and the citizens of Wisconsin. Here is a summary of the positions of the Conservation Budget Coalition, of which Madison Audubon Society and Wisconsin Audubon Council are members. You might want to choose just one issue from the list to focus on. To see the entire document (which is much lengthier), go to the Wisconsin League of Conservation Voters webpage, (the printable version – near top – may be easier to read). ************ Wisconsin’s state budget is one of the best indicators of our state’s conservation values. In general, a pro-conservation budget should:
As introduced, Governor Walker’s budget (SB 27/AB40) is a serious attack on natural resource and public health protections in Wisconsin and does not meet the qualifications above. ASKS The Conservation Budget Coalition asks Joint Finance Committee Members to remove the following policy items – which have no fiscal impact - from SB 27/AB 40:
The Conservation Budget Coalition asks Joint Finance Committee Members to restore the following programs in statute and return their existing revenue.
The Conservation Budget Coalition asks Joint Finance Committee Members to restore the following programs in statute. These were either completely eliminated or zeroed out with their funding funneled to other non-specific programs.
The Conservation Budget Coalition asks Joint Finance Committee Members to support the following programs at the levels proposed by Governor Walker.
Thanks for taking action! 11/22/2010 Alert: Help Protect Wisconsin Bats Cave bats in Wisconsin are under severe threat. Please help by urging the Wisconsin Natural Resources Board to pass permanent rules to protect these bats as best we can. Cave bats in Wisconsin could be affected (and possibly wiped out) by white-nose syndrome, which is poised at our borders and which has already devastated entire populations in the eastern U.S. Emergency rules were passed by the Natural Resources Board earlier this fall. A proposal to make these rules permanent will be before the Board at their Wednesday, Dec. 8 meeting in Madison. More information can be found in DNR's "green sheet" package from October: http://www.dnr.state.wi.us/org/nrboard/2010/October/10-10-3B1.pdf Comments can be submitted until November 29, 2010 to Stacy Rowe, DNR Bureau of Endangered Resources, PO Box 7921, Madison WI, 53707-7921 or stacy.rowe@wisconsin.gov. If you wish to attend the meeting and speak, contact the Natural Resources Board Liaison by 4 p.m. Friday, Dec. 3. Complete directions are at http://dnr.wi.gov/org/nrboard/ 11/16/2010 Alert: Let Your Voice Be Heard on Trains Governor-Elect Scott Walker has said that he will stop building the high speed rail system and send $810 million back to Washington D.C. If that happens, the state of Wisconsin will be the biggest loser. Contact Governor-Elect Walker and your state representatives and tell them that Wisconsin needs the jobs, the investment, and the benefits of a multi-modal transportation system and that Wisconsin needs High Speed Rail. Let them know you oppose the effort to block the construction of High Speed Rail in Wisconsin. You can contact Governor-Elect Scott Walker (www.transition.wi.gov) via email at TRANSITION@WISCONSIN.GOV or send a letter to Office of Governor-Elect Scott Walker, 17 West Main Street, Suite 310, Madison, WI 53703. If you wish to contact your state legislators, see http://legis.wisconsin.gov/w3asp/waml/waml.aspx In addition to the green infrastructure benefits of high speed rail, consider the following costs of cancelling:
10/22/2010 Alert: Rose Lake Land Preservation Effort - Kemmeter Propertyţ Madison Audubon strongly supports the acquisition of the Kemmeter property that is north of Rose Lake. The $600,000 to complete the purchase would come entirely from grants and donations, with no Jefferson County tax dollars needed. Please attend the hearing next Tuesday, Oct. 26 if you can, or contact Jefferson County supervisors or the county clerk to support this acquisition. Purchase of this property has importance beyond Jefferson County, so even if you live outside the county, you should let supervisors know how important it is to add this parcel to Dorothy Carnes Park at Rose Lake. See list of supervisors and contact info at http://www.jeffersoncountywi.gov/jc/public/jchome.php?page_id=1127or contact Barb Frank, Jefferson County Clerk, barbf@jeffersoncountywi.gov Public comment opportunity: Tuesday, Oct. 26, at 7 p.m. in room 205 of the Jefferson County Courthouse Vote on the budget: Tuesday, Nov. 9, at 7 p.m. in room 205 of theJefferson County Courthouse For more information, contact myself or Joe Nehmer, Jefferson County Parks Director, at JoeN@jeffersoncountywi.gov or 920-674-7260. Karen Etter Hale, Executive Secretary, Madison Audubon Society 608/255-BIRD (2473) 10/22/2010 Alert: Support Park, Open Space, andClean Water in Dane County The Dane County Board of Supervisors will hold a public hearing on the proposed 2011 Dane County Budget next Monday, Oct. 25, at 7:00 p.m. in Room 201 of the City County Building.
Madison Audubon Society, a member of CRANES (Capital Region Advocacy Network for Environmental Sustainability), supports full conservation funding in the 2011 budget. For more information, contact Gary Werner, CRANES president, at nattrails@aol.com or 608-249-7870 or Harry Read, MAS's CRANES representative, at harry.read@uwlumni.com Thanks for taking action. 10/15/2010 Cherokee Marsh - Action Alert URGENT! Contact City of Madison Common Council alderpersons by Tuesday, Oct. 19 at 3 p.m.! Even if you live outside the City of Madison. Urge them to vote NO on Agenda Item 12 (Legislative File # 19348), a $432,000 Community Block Grant Development (CBGD) application by Independent Living, a provider of assisted or senior housing, among other nonprofit services. Or attend the Council meeting at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 19, Room 201 (City-County Building). Starting at 6:00 p.m. you can stop in to register in opposition (then come to the Madison Audubon meeting at Capitol Lakes!). Flash: We have just learned that a request was made to refer (delay) this to their Nov. 9 meeting. There is no guarantee that it will be referred, but usually the Council honors such a request. Please still register in opposition ("No to Item 12") by e-mail or in person, but until further notice, please hold off on sharing the talking points. Background Madison Audubon Society has worked for many years to help protect Cherokee Marsh, a critical wetland resource at the headwaters of the Yahara Lakes system. Please help us prevent additional stormwater runoff due to sprawl from a proposed development that fails to meet even the minimum conditions set forth in the City's own Comprehensive Plan. Cherokee Marsh, a Wisconsin Wetland Gem, is a key natural area for the Yahara watershed's streams, wetlands, and lakes, and for the entire Capital region. Hundreds of wetlands acres that have been protected by the city and its partners, Dane County and the State of Wisconsin, cannot function ecologically without protection of the adjacent upland acres. Two City of Madison Committees voted to approve this application, but did so only on the basis of the proposed facility's merit. They are leaving the environmental and siting review to the City's Plan Commission. For a busy Council, this may create an unwarranted sense of momentum. The city needs to take the next step and protect these crucial 42 acres of unfragmented upland, the last such habitat on the south end of the marsh. Additional Points
Mayor Dave Cieslewicz - Use the online contact form http://www.cityofmadison.com/mayor/contactMayor.cfm or contact directly at mayor@cityofmadison.com or 608-266-4611 City of Madison Alderpersons (individuals) – See below or online at http://www.cityofmadison.com/Council/contact.cfm or e-mail all alders at once: allalders@cityofmadison.com CITY OF MADISON COMMON COUNCIL Meeting 19 OCTOBER 2010 ~ Tuesday ~ 6:30 p.m.210 Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd. Room 201 (City-County Building) MEMBERS 2009-2011 (BY DISTRICTS)http://www.cityofmadison.com/council/documents/2009publicroster.pdf D Name Home Phone ***** This alert has been approved by the Capital Area Region Advocacy Network for Environmental Sustainability (CRANES) Executive Committee, on behalf of CRANES partner organizations:Friends of Cherokee Marsh, League of Women Voters ~ Dane County, Sierra Club ~ Four Lakes Group, Madison Audubon Society, Earth/Art® Resources, West Waubesa Preservation Coalition, Friends of Pheasant Branch Conservancy, and Western Dane Coalition for Smart Growth and Environment For more information, contact Jon Becker, Co-founder & Vice-President/Treasurer of Capital Region Advocacy Network for Environmental Sustainability (CRANES) at 608-242-8525 or Jonbecker@aol.com Thanks for taking action, |