RMEF KY story

[elkguy]

If any of you are interested in reading a Bugle magazine article about what the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation is working on in KY, click on the link below. We have had several developments come together and made a lot of progress since I wrote this article. We will be getting out press releases on these developments as soon as we can.

http://www.rmefsouthernkentucky.com/images/Bugle-article-Ledford.pdf

Any questions are welcomed.

I hope I posted the link correctly.

David Ledford
London, KY
davidrmef@alltel.net

[ril7572]

Good article, thanks for sharing it with us.

[gwhilikerz]

Great article elkguy. I enjoyed it a lot and also learned a lot. Thank you

[WBBP]

Great article Elkguy. Very good reading.

K

[KyLongbeard]

Good reading. I enjoyed it.

[elkguy]

Thanks for your comments. I wrote it really slow because I know some people (adam?) that post here can't read very fast.

[schuyler olt]

Great story, Dave. Brought back some fond memories of being at that release. There were a lot of damp eyes, including mine. I also remember the effort to change the reclamation regs in 95. If my memory serves me correctly, that may have been one of the very first times I spoke before a legislative committee on a conservation matter. It's incredible how much more knowledgeable our legislators have become on conservation issues over that decade.

I was also on the state board of the NWTF when we voted unanimously to become a Habitat Partner of the RMEF, something that was unheard of at the time. Alex Lea, myself and several others had to do a lot of talking with nationals to get that commitment approved but, interestingly, it started a cooperative effort between the RMEF and the NWTF that has benefitted both organizations directly.

Your 2030 vision is interesting. While the elk herd will continue to grow, the human population will probably grow in that area far more rapidly. As you point out in your article, flat land is a premium, and mountain top removal is the prime means of creating it. There are only a couple of tops left, so flat land in southeast Kentucky is somewhat of a finite resource even today. There was an interesting article in yesterday's Courier (maybe Tuesday's) about the rapidly growing use of these areas for horse grazing, and efforts to expand the horse industry into the area. So we will face competition for these areas not only for human needs, but for agricultural needs as well.

With increased population and hopefully prosperity in that region, human demands for infrastructure will dramatically increase. More schools, more housing, more health care facilities, new and widened highways, improved transportation facilities such as airports, shopping areas, recreational facilities, and industrial development sites will become in ever increasingly high demand. The corporations who own these mining sites must answer to their shareholders in the form of bottom line profits. Corporate pride in doing the "right thing" is hard to cash at the bank. So when we get into competition with a business center developer who is offering not only money for the land, but new jobs, more local tax revenue, additional financial support to improve nearby roads, etc., we're going to have a hard nut to crack. I was at a Kentucky Progress Committee meeting recently in the general area, and the local mayor pointed with great pride that they had scored a major steakhouse chain restaurant. The small communities are starving for growth, and anything perceived as an effort to curb that growth will likely not be well received, unfortunately.

I'm absolutely on your side in this. Hunting and ecotourism hold significant economic potential--we need to aggressively step foward to enhance and build on what exists, not only in terms of elk, but in terms of other species such as grouse and turkeys that have strong hunter bases in other states that travel extensively to hunt in other states. Because of the Grand Slam, turkey hunters are notorious for out of state hunting. I can tell you first hand that whether I travel to hunt elk, pheasants, ducks, or turkeys, I spend just about the same money. If we can aggressively increase our grouse population, I think we are looking at a gold mine.

By 2030, those opportunities may well be gone. In my opinion, we need to have the strategies and tactical plans, costs and funding mechanisms fully developed by no later than 2007 if we hope to get out in front of the competiton for land. Right now, that train is moving at a much faster clip than ours, and the time is right now to aggressively start throwing coal in the boiler.

[trust me]

Elkguy, Schuyler Olt, I appreciate your efforts on behalf of sportsmen across the state. I highly recommend that you and your organizations pay really close attention to the communities you are discussing. Go to the local Fish and Game groups, the local Chambers of Commerce, the county judges and the mayors. Make sure you involve these folks from the getgo. Too often groups view us and our land only in terms of their own needs and visions, and forget they are overlooking the folks who actually live and breathe here.

For instance, I appreciate your elk's presence in my county. But I'd trade them all in a heartbeat for a couple of coal companies that could fill 3 or 4 trainloads of coal orders a week. I enjoy grouse hunting as much as anything, but if there's coal under my favorite coverts, you better bet I'd be the first to mine it, and happily hunt elsewhere.

Again, thanks for all your past and future efforts. Just make sure the locals are on board with whatever you plan to do. Our area has a history of folks pissing down our back and telling us it's raining, and good two-way communication will avoid that.

[schuyler olt]

Trust Me,

You hit the nail squarely on the head. If we don't come with a business plan that translates into hard dollars and cents we don't stand a chance. In many of the counties in your region, the school board chairman is more powerful than the county judge, because he employs more people and spends the most money. You guys have more scenery than you can stand, but not the money to enjoy the quality of life it could bring.

[grouseguy]

From a fellow eastern KY travelling grouse hunting fanatic...I couldn't agree more with what Schuyler and Trust Me has posted, especially the overlooked and unrecognized impact of travelling bird (turkey, grouse, quail) hunters. It seems in KY we have some "tunnel vision" regarding the value of certain species. Most efforts are directed towards antlered game, and it is my experience that whitetail deer just don't cause many to travel in significant numbers due to their widespread populations, and elk will cause hunters to travel in pursuit of them, but in KY, even at the projected tag numbers, will never be a significant tourist draw because of the overall insignificant numbers...no doubt certain INDIVIDUALS will benefit financially from the elk, but the region as a whole will not notice any significant economic impact. However, the bird hunters mentioned above will travel numerous times a year in pursuit of their preferred species, and will spend more money locally than all other user groups combined.

Check out this link for a community that I'm very familiar with that does an excellent job of marketing their forms of outdoor recreation in a joint effort with the local business community for the benefit of the entire region, and be sure you click on the "recreation" button:

http://www.parkfalls.com/

With the DBNF and the many lakes, state parks, WMA's, etc. of our region, we could have the same situation with a little vision and coordination.

[elkguy]

Very good comments from you all and I agree with most of your comments. I don't have a lot of room to write it up here, but following is a summary list of things that I have been doing and that are coming together to further this effort and to do the very things you guys mention.

1. We are working with the Daniel Boone National Forest to put together community based forest and land management efforts. We are looking to create community based efforts for the DBNF to buy land, and do habitat improvement projects. Believe me when I say that grouse are at the top of the list. Good grouse forest habitat is also good elk forest habitat.
2. I was in Washington DC all week last week where I lobbied Hal Rogers' and McConnell's staffs on helping the DBNF get $$ for land acquisition and habitat projects.
3. Our focus on the mining issues is related to mine reclamation. I have no intention or desires to impede the coal industry in KY. In fact, if I was king for a day, I would create a system in which every mine was reclaimed in the best manner possible for wildlife, no matter the cost, and to have an environment where reclaiming to make the best habitat would actually help the companies make money.
4. You will soon be hearing about an event that will be held in Louisville on 23 June. It is a Mine Reclamation for Wildlife Summit. For several months, we have been working with KDFWR, KDNR, OSM and the KY Coal Association on developing new guidelines for mine reclamation. This has culminated in the Secertary of Interior, Gale Norton and the Assistant Secretary, Becky Watson having OSM out of DC come to KY to work with the RMEF and KDFWR to figure out what we need to do better for wildlife on reclaimed mines. This summit has the objective of launching an effort to do the following. 1) Revise reclamation guidelines so that the best habitat possible is created in the reclamation process. 2) Create an incentive that the industry will latch onto and be anxious to do the "high-speed" reclamation. 3) Make sure there is a service provider for the industry so that we know that reclamation jobs are designed the best way possible to achieve the best habitat possible. THis summit will not be the end, but the biginning. Some invited and some confirmed speakers include Gale Norton, Becky Watson from Interior, OSM Director Jeff Jarrett, RMEF CEO J Dart, a couple of coal and land company CEOs, etc. This has morphed into changing coal mine reclamation guidelines throughout the entire eastern US, not just KY.

While in DC last week I also met twice with the Assistant Interior Secretary Watson, and for an hour and a half with the Director of OSM, Jeff Jarrett. Jon Gassett was with me with the OSM Director, and Jon is a critical and huge partner in our efforts. You guys are very fortunate to have him. More details will come later, but we are going to change how things are done, and the RMEF and KDFWR and KDNR want to do it in a framework that helps, and does not hinder, the coal industry. This Summit in June is creating an enormous amount of momentum and we will be issuing press release within a few weeks.

We are beginning the process of working with a variety of partners to create state legislation for habitat conservation in KY. We are working on things like state tax credits for conservation easements, and creating a land acquisition fund for the state. We are in the formative stages and will be asking for help soon.

I am working with communities in East KY to begin incorporating wildlife conservation into tourism initiatives, most notably Hal Rogers' efforts. I will be at the East KY Leadership forum in Paintsville in April.

The RMEF has facilitated a deal that should be closing within a couple of weeks that will create a new 54,000-acre WMA in East KY. Most of it has no elk. Only one 12,000-acre section does.

I have to stop now, but the tactics of the RMEF include local communities and economies. That is how we operate. I invite all of you to jump on board and help us.

There is much more to say, but I have to stop now.

My date of 2030 is based on the goals. Look at the numbers I mentioned in the article.

[Mount-N-Man]

Elkguy... Keep up the good work.