NEWS for October 31, 2005
Centennial of State Natural Resource Management:This year marks the 100th anniversary of game and fish law enforcement by the state of South Carolina. The passage of Act 489 in 1905 provided for the appointment of game wardens by the governor, and in 1906 Act 60 created the State Board of Fisheries, beginning a century of progress in the professional management, protection and improvement of South Carolina's natural resources. These pieces of legislation also began an evolution that led to the creation of the S.C. Department of Natural Resources. DNR invites its constituents, sportsmen and friends to join in the year-long commemoration of the advances made by the agency and the contributions of its current employees and those who preceded them.
A Summary of DNR News Releases
Full-length articles follow these summaries, also fishing trends and tidetable. For more information, call the Communications Office of the S.C. Department of Natural Resources at (803) 734-3950 in Columbia. For immediate needs, contact Mike Creel at CreelM@dnr.sc.gov. News releases, fishing reports and weekly tidetable are available to Internet users at http://www.dnr.sc.gov/. Weekly news text files and print quality captioned image files may also be downloaded from ftp://www.dnr.sc.gov/pub/news/DNRnews2005/. For newspaper print quality captioned image files contact Newsdesk@dnr.sc.gov.
* Purchase Hunting, Fishing
Licenses By Phone, Internet -- Renewing or purchasing a South Carolina
fishing and hunting license is now easier than ever, because you can do so over
the phone and on the Internet. Licenses are available 24 hours a day, seven days
a week by calling 1-866-714-3611 or on the Internet by visiting
http://www.dnr.sc.gov/purchase.html. (A convenience fee of $3.95 will
apply.) Licenses for the 2005-2006 season may also be purchased from about 1,000
retail stores in South Carolina or from most S.C. Department of Natural
Resources offices. The S.C. Department of Natural Resources (DNR) sells hunting
and fishing licenses at its Columbia headquarters in the Rembert Dennis Building
at 1000 Assembly St., DNR field offices in Charleston, Florence and Clemson and
through many retail businesses across the state. Licenses for the 2005-2006
season are on sale now.
#05-227
* DNR Law Enforcement Committee Meeting Set Nov. 2 In
Columbia -- The Law Enforcement Advisory Committee to the S.C. Natural
Resources Board will meet 10:30 a.m. Wednesday, Nov. 2 at Millaree Hunt Club near Columbia. The meeting is
open to the public. Anyone needing information or directions to the meeting may
call Jessica Clements at (803) 734-3607 at the S.C. Department of Natural
Resources (DNR) law enforcement headquarters in Columbia.
#05-228
* State Heritage Trust Board Meets Nov. 3 At
Francis Marion -- The S.C. Heritage Trust Advisory Board will meet 9 a.m.
Thursday, Nov. 3 at Francis Marion University near Florence in the President's
Dining Room. The Heritage Trust Advisory Board meeting is open to the public
except during executive session. Anyone with business for the advisory board or
needing directions to the meeting may call (803) 734-3918 in Columbia. The S.C.
Department of Natural Resources Heritage Trust Program protects significant
natural and cultural lands in South Carolina. Formed by state law in 1976,
Heritage Trust has protected 81,133 acres on 69 state heritage preserves found
throughout South Carolina.
#05-229
*
State Small Game Hunting Surveys Rank Top Counties For Quail, Rabbit --
Survey results for the 2004-05 hunting season show Lee, Orangeburg, Horry,
Sumter and Marlboro counties were the top five counties for quail, while the top
five counties for rabbits jumped per hour were Lee, Saluda, Greenwood,
Orangeburg and Edgefield, according to biologists with the S.C. Department of
Natural Resources Small Game Project. Through intensive field observations,
South Carolina quail and rabbit hunters maintained detailed records of their
hunting excursions throughout the year and provided the data to the S.C.
Department of Natural Resources (DNR) Small Game Project for analysis. The S.C.
State Council of Quail Unlimited assists with funding for the supplies necessary
to conduct the surveys. To receive copies of the Quail Hunter Survey report or
the Rabbit Hunter Survey report or to have your name added to the list of
potential cooperators, contact the DNR Small Game Project in Columbia at (803)
734-3609.
#05-230
*
Shrimp-Baiting Season Closes Tuesday, Nov. 8 -- The S.C. Department of
Natural Resources reminds the public that the 2005 shrimp-baiting season closes
at noon Tuesday, Nov. 8. The season has been open since Sept. 9. Shrimp-baiting
season is the 60-day period each year when recreational shrimpers who purchase a
shrimp-baiting license can cast for shrimp over bait. DNR law enforcement
officers will continue monitoring after Nov. 8 to make sure that no one is
baiting out of season. For more information on shrimp baiting, call the S.C.
Department of Natural Resources in Charleston at (843) 953-9031.
#05-231
* Pioneer Law Enforcement Chief Led DNR Into Modern Era -- Few organizations are stronger than its individual members, but a former chief game warden during the formative years of the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources was certainly instrumental in building law enforcement as a powerful force for conservation. A.A. Richardson served as chief game warden for the state of South Carolina from 1913 to 1958. By the time of Richardson's official retirement in 1958, he could look back in pride to a number of accomplishments. He was instrumental in developing game wardens into a profession, with better training, uniforms and even vehicles with two-way radios. He could also claim the lion's share of responsibility for numerous laws such as shortened hunting seasons, laws against netting and trapping game fish, and the outlawing of baiting wild turkeys. #05-232
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