November 19, 2018
By:
Walter G. Wright
Category:
Arkansas Environmental, Energy, and Water Law
Arkansas Environmental, Energy, and Water Law
Download PDF
The Arkansas Game and Fish Commission (“AG&FC”) approved new regulations that are described as regulating and more closely monitoring the commercial harvest of aquatic turtles in Arkansas.
The Center for Biological Diversity (“CBD”) states that the issuance of the regulations were in response to a petition they submitted on September 25, 2017, to the AG&FC.
The AG&FC describes the regulatory changes as including:
- To cap the sale of annual commercial turtle harvest-related permit holders to 150 per year for 2019-2021;
- Require submission of at least one report per harvester per year in order to renew a commercial harvester or dealer permit;
- Close the Gulf Coastal Plain to commercial aquatic turtle harvest;
- Close the St. Francis River in Greene and Clay counties to commercial aquatic turtle harvest;
- Prohibit the harvest of razorback musk turtles, and
- Clarify that anyone holding wild caught aquatic turtles for commercial transfer purposes must have an Aquatic Turtle Dealer Permit.
CBD also states that the AG&FC will conduct a three-year study from 2019-2021 to determine the effect of commercial trapping on wild turtle populations in the Delta region.
A copy of an AG&FC news release can be found here.
The Between the Lines blog is made available by Mitchell, Williams, Selig, Gates & Woodyard, P.L.L.C. and the law firm publisher. The blog site is for educational purposes only, as well as to give general information and a general understanding of the law. This blog is not intended to provide specific legal advice. Use of this blog site does not create an attorney client relationship between you and Mitchell Williams or the blog site publisher. The Between the Lines blog site should not be used as a substitute for legal advice from a licensed professional attorney in your state.