NRA FILES PAPERS OPPOSING CBD PETITION TO BAN HUNTING IN MOJAVE PRESERVE

ON DECEMBER 30, 2009. POSTED IN LATEST NEWS, LEAD AMMUNITION BAN PROPONENTS, LEGAL NEWS

On November 24, 2009, under the guise of protecting the Mojave Desert Tortoise, the Center for Biological Diversity and others (CBD) presented the California Fish & Game Commission (FGC) with a petition for rule making (Petition) that requests FGC make several revisions to current hunting regulations that could severely limit hunting in the Mojave National Preserve (MNP).

Because the Petition is not supported by scientific research and would unfairly restrict hunting, the National Rifle Association (NRA) and the California Rifle and Pistol Association (CRPA) recently filed an Opposition to the Petition with the FGC that explains why the Petition should be denied.

To view the Opposition, click here.

The Petition primarily relies on research that is out dated and irrelevant. The bulk of the research occurred before the Mojave Desert Tortoise was listed as threatened under California and federal law (1989 and 1990, respectively), before the MNP was created under the California Desert Protection Act (1994), and before the Desert Tortoise (Mojave Population) Recovery Plan was adopted (1994). The data is suspect because it was collected before more than $90,000,000 was spent on the Mojave Desert Tortoise’s recovery (1996-2006) so any improvements were disregarded. Furthermore, and perhaps more importantly, the research at issue (to the extent it is considered credible) tends to examine instances where tortoise shells were apparently shot by non-hunters. This does nothing to prove that hunting is a potential cause of harm to tortoises. Most importantly, it does not even indicate living tortoises were harmed by the use of a firearm.

The FGC, working with legal counsel for the California Department of Fish & Game, is now reviewing the Petition. It is likely the FGC will announce if the Petition has been denied or will be given further consideration at the February 3-4, 2010, meeting of the FGC.