The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF) will conduct informational public hearings May 27 in Winnsboro and May 28 in St. Joseph on a notice of intent (NOI) that bans supplemental feeding and cervid carcass export from the Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) control area, which includes Franklin, Madison and Tensas parishes

The action is part of LDWF’s CWD Management Plan.

The May 27 hearing will be held at the LSU Ag Center Macon Ridge Research Station in Winnsboro at 6 p.m. The May 28 hearing is set for the LSU Ag Center Northeast Louisiana Research Center in St. Joseph at 10 a.m.

The Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries Commission (LWFC) approved the NOI during its April meeting. 

LDWF instituted its CWD Management Plan in those three parishes in response to a CWD positive detection on Jan. 28 of an adult buck harvested in Tensas Parish. CWD is a disease that is always fatal to deer. It was the first deer recorded with CWD in the state, making Louisiana the 28th state to discover the disease, now occurring in 29 states.

The NOI, in part, reads:

 

 

 

 

To see the full NOI, go to https://www.wlf.louisiana.gov/resources/category/commission-action-items.

The public may comment on the NOI until July 6, 2022. Comments may be submitted to LDWF Deer Program Manager Johnathan Bordelon by email at jbordelon@wlf.la.gov or by mail sent to LDWF, P.O. Box 98000, Baton Rouge, LA., 70898.

For more information, contact LDWF Deer Program Manager Johnathan Bordelon at jbordelon@wlf.la.gov or LDWF State Veterinarian Dr. Jim LaCour at jlacour@wlf.la.gov.