CWD public meetings set for tonight -- Monday, Aug. 22 -- in Crookston and Fargo

Brad Dokken, Grand Forks Herald
·2 min read

Aug. 22—GRAND FORKS — The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources and the North Dakota Game and Fish Department both are conducting public meetings tonight — Monday, Aug. 22 — to discuss strategies and regulation changes on tap after the discovery last fall of chronic wasting disease in a single whitetail buck shot near Climax, Minnesota.

Because of the finding, the DNR designated what formerly was Permit Area 261 as a CWD management zone, renaming it as DPA 661.

The DNR meeting is set for 6 to 8 p.m. in the Bede Ballroom at the University of Minnesota-Crookston, 2900 University Ave.; and the Game and Fish Department meeting begins at 7 p.m. in the Fargo Holiday Inn, 3803 13th Ave. S.

At the Crookston meeting, Dr. Michelle Carstensen and Barb Keller of the DNR's wildlife heath and big game programs, respectively, will share information about hunting regulation changes and CWD management in the Climax area and answer questions.

As an alternative to attending the meeting in-person, people also can register to attend the presentation virtually via Webex. Virtual participation options are available on the

DNR website

.

In November 2021, the DNR confirmed the first case of CWD in a wild deer harvested southwest of Climax along the Minnesota-North Dakota border. The confirmed case prompted the DNR to designate DPA 661 as a new CWD management zone.

Because of the positive CWD finding on the Minnesota side of the river, the North Dakota Game and Fish Department has implemented a baiting ban for deer hunters in Unit 2B, which follows the Red River from Grand Forks to south of Fargo.

Game and Fish applies baiting restrictions in any deer hunting unit that falls within 25 miles of a previous CWD detection, which in this case is the site near Climax on the Minnesota side of the river, said Dr. Charlie Bahnson, wildlife veterinarian for Game and Fish in Bismarck.

The Fargo meeting will include a formal presentation on the history, current status and the future of CWD in North Dakota, followed by an opportunity to visit individually with department staff.

Game and Fish also has scheduled meetings for Aug. 24 in Dickinson at the Grand Dakota Lodge, 532 15th St. W., and Aug. 29 at the Grand Hotel in Minot, 1505 N. Broadway.