ALBUQUERQUE — The New Mexico Wildlife Federation will hold its annual membership meeting Wed., Nov. 13 in Albuquerque.
To encourage good attendance, the NMWF is offering valuable door prizes including:
__ Vortex Crossfire HD 12×50 binoculars;
__ A Camp Chef Rainier Campers Combo stove/grill kit, and:
__ A Ken Onion Edition Knife and Tool Sharpener.
The federation also will pick up one free beer for everyone who attends. Other refreshments are planned as well.
All NMWF supporters are encouraged to attend to learn about federation activities and to comment about issues they think the federation should address over the coming year.
“We’re proud of our accomplishments so far this year,” said NMWF Executive Director Jesse Deubel. “We’re eager to talk to our members and gear up for the year ahead.”
The NMWF was instrumental this year in prompting the New Mexico Department State Game Commission to end its policy of issuing extra hunting licenses to guided and out-of-state hunters while failing to give state residents the minimum 84 percent of licenses that state law requires.
The NMWF earlier this year published an article about Albuquerque hunter Brandon Wynn’s analysis of how the New Mexico Department of Game and Fish was allocating hunting licenses. Wynn found that the department routinely was issuing more tags than it advertised in the annual hunting proclamation with the result that resident hunters often failed to receive the required minimum of 84 percent of tags required by state law.
As a result of the NMWF’s scrutiny, the game commission in October voted to do away with issuing extra tags and agreed with the game department’s proposal to make sure that residents receive at least the required 84 percent.
Deubel said he’s also proud of the work the NMWF has done this year in pushing to get the game commission to rescind the “non-navigable waters” rule enacted by the previous game commission. The rule purports to allow the game department to certify that certain streams and rivers that cross private land are “non-navigable” and accordingly closed to public access.
Deubel and John Crenshaw, president of the NMWF board, wrote to the current game commission earlier this year informing them that a 1945 ruling by the New Mexico Supreme Court and several subsequent state attorneys general opinions have affirmed the public’s right to fish and otherwise use waterways that cross private property. Waterways are open to the public provided that people don’t trespass on private land to reach the waterways to begin with and provided they don’t trespass from the streams onto private property, the court and the attorneys general have said.
The game commission voted in October to reopen the non-navigable waters rule, which could result either in changing it, repealing it or keeping it in place.
“It’s critical that New Mexico sportsmen make themselves heard and press for our rights to use the waters of the state,” Deubel said. He encouraged people to attend the Nov. 21 Game Commission meeting in Roswell at which the game department will give a briefing on the rule, kicking off the process of revising or repealing it.
“We’re pleased to see many other state and national conservation groups following the New Mexico Wildlife Federation’s lead and calling on this game commission to roll back the non-navigable waters rule,” Deubel said. “The federation will continue to lead the fight for anglers and sportsmen to use the waters of the state.”
The annual membership meeting starts at 5:30 p.m. Nov. 13 at Marble Brewery’s Northeast Heights location at 9904 Montgomery Blvd., NE, in Albuquerque.
“We’re looking forward to a good turnout and want to hear from our membership about the important issues facing New Mexico wildlife and sportsmen,” Deubel said. “Please plan to attend and we’ll see you there.”
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