CONSERVATION ACTION
News of the December 14, 2001 Conservation Commission meeting
Contact: Stephanie Ramsey, (573) 751-4115;
E-mail: Stephanie.Ramsey@mdc.mo.gov

The Conservation Commission met December 14 at the Department's Headquarters in Jefferson City, Missouri. Commissioners present were:

Anita B. Gorman, Kansas City
Howard L. Wood, Bonne Terre
Stephen C. Bradford, Cape Girardeau
Cynthia Metcalfe, St. Louis

The next meeting of the Conservation Commission was set for January 30, 2002, at Tan-Tar-A Resort, Osage Beach, Missouri.

PRESENTATION:

Commission meetings are open to the public. Those wishing to be placed on the agenda for a presentation or other business must send a written request to Director, Department of Conservation, P. O. Box 180, Jefferson City, MO 65102-0180, or FAX (573) 751-4467, at least 10 working days before the meeting date. The Commission heard the following presentations:

Dennis R. Ballard, Executive Director, Conservation Federation of Missouri Presented options for raising funds to offset the cost of processing deer donated to the Share the Harvest program.  

At a special ceremony in conjunction with the meeting, the Commission Chairman presented service awards to the following long-term employees:

Twenty-five Year Service Awards to: Larry Strobel, Cheryl Baslee, and Elizabeth "Betty" Siebeneck, Administrative Services Division; Jerry Routh and Eldon Beach, Forestry Division; Willie Lyles, Jr., James Rathert and Rodney Green, Outreach and Education Division; Robert Cunningham, Jr., Private Land Services Division; Gregory Toczylowski, Protection Division; and Eric Kurzejeski, Charles "Tom" Sisson, IV, and James "Roger" Wombwell, Wildlife Division.

Thirty Year Service Awards to: Tom Ronk and Michael Korte, Forestry Division; and Richard Sperber, Protection.

Thirty-five Year Service Awards to: Jack Boyles and Jim Choate, Wildlife Division.

The Commission also presented the Clerical Employee of the Year Award to Administrative Staff Assistant  Marian Redhage, East Central Regional Office, Sullivan; and a Special Achievement Award to Private Land Conservationist John Murphy, Princeton, for his actions in responding to an emergency motor vehicle accident.

REGULATION:

The Conservation Commission approved the following regulations items:

Dates for the 2002 spring turkey hunting season.  The season will be twenty-one (21) days in length (from April 22 - May 12, 2002).  A person possessing the prescribed turkey hunting permit may take two (2) male turkey or turkeys with visible beard during the season; provided, only one (1) may be taken the first seven (7) days of the season (April 22 through April 28) and only one (1) turkey may be taken per day from April 29 through May 12.

Youth Spring Season Dates: April 13-14, 2002 (Always opens nine days prior to the opening of the Spring Season).

Added the Scale Shell Mussel and Tumbling Creek Cave Snail to the list of native species designated as endangered in Missouri.

ADMINISTRATION: The Commission also took the following action:

1. 1.  Authorized purchase of approximately 26 acres of land as an addition to the Montgomery Woods Conservation Area in Adair County.
2. 2.  Authorized purchase of approximately 5 acres of land as an addition to Three Creeks Conservation Area in Boone County.
3. 3.  Authorized trade of 26.11 acres of Coldwater Conservation Area for 12.93 acres owned by Margaret Anne Williams Trust and Williams Family Partnership, all located in Wayne County.
4. 4.  Authorized designation two areas owned by the Department of Conservation as Missouri Natural Areas: Overcup Fen Natural Area, 130 acres within the Little Black Conservation Area, Ripley County; and Pipestem Hollow Natural Area, a 217-acres, 1.5 mile long portion of Angeline Conservation Area, Shannon County.
5. 5. Approved the 2000-2001 Annual Report for the Department of Conservation, and authorized publication and distribution.
6. 6.  Approved a draft comment letter to the Memphis District, Corps of Engineers, regarding the St. Johns' Bayou/New Madrid Floodway Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement.
7. 7.  The Commission scheduled a special conference call meeting to be held at Department headquarters on Tuesday, December 18, 2001, at 3:00 p.m., to discuss captive cervid issues and possible relocation ramifications.

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