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Advocate photo by SOPHIA GERMER

Top oyster shuckers compete during P&J Oyster Shucking contest to see who can shuck the most oysters in 2 minutes during the annual New Orleans Oyster Festival in Woldenberg Park on June 4. 

Deer and oysters representing recreational and commercial interests dominated the more than three hours of Thursday’s Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries Commission meeting in Baton Rouge.

Discussion surrounding deer came in the wake of a notice of intent in the state’s attempt to keep chronic wasting disease from entering the state. The move, passed in early July, is scheduled for commission ratification later this year, and the “Cervid Carcass Ban Notice” was slated to become rule some time during the deer hunting season.

After a presentation by State Deer Study leader Johnathan Bordelon outlining the mostly negative response during a series of statewide public hearings, a lengthy discussion among commission members resulted in commission member Chad Courville offering an amendment to allow bone-in meat from deer and other animals in the cervid family to be brought into the state. The original notice prohibited hunters from bringing in the brain, glands and bones from animals taken in other states.

Courville said because hundreds of Louisianans hunt in Texas, and Texas mandates meat be left on the bone, he reasoned his amendment allowing meat on the bone to cross state lines would keep state hunters from violating game laws in another state. Another provision allows those bones to be disposed of in an “approved” landfill.

More importantly for hunters is that the amendment put a March 1, 2017, effective day for any new rule covering the importation ban.

The opening date for harvest taken from the state’s public oyster areas came after a dismal report from state biologist Steve Beck, who told the commission the harvest from these areas was down 13 percent in 2016 compared to 2015, that the stock assessment was down 19.3 percent from 2015 and is 72.4 percent lower than the long-term average of all years dating from 1982.

Beck said the public harvest was complemented by record take from he termed “private landings.” The state’s total exceeded 14 million pounds of oyster meat in 2015.

Beck and his staff recommended Sept. 7 openers for areas east of the Mississippi River, Bay Junop, Lake Mechant and the Vermilion/Atchafalaya bays area; Nov. 14 opener in American Bay/Bay Long and Hackberry Bay and a reopen east of the Mississippi River; and, closed seasons in areas south of the Mississippi River Gulf Outlet, Little Lake in Barataria Bay, the lakes Felicity, Chien, Tambour and Deep area, and in Calcasieu and Sabine lakes.

The Calcasieu closure drew fire from fishermen and buyers alike. The gist of their arguments was that there were enough oysters to allow last year’s seven-sack-a-day take.

The commission approved all the dates and areas, except the Calcasieu area, and moved a decision on that area to the Oct. 6 meeting when Beck said there would be more data to access the Calcasieu stocks.