If you have a deer problem, Maryland State Police wants to help solve it.
Frederick County's farmers have embraced a suggestion from state troopers that helps them reduce their deer population, but any landowner can take advantage of the offer.
Michael J. Brady, coordinator of the program for the Maryland State Police, will link a trooper who wants to hunt with a farmer who wants to have deer hunted on their farm.
Deer damage affects Maryland agriculture to the tune of $26.5 million annually for grain crops and $11.5 million for high-value agricultural crops, according to the University of Maryland Extension website. Deer is such a problem that farm bureaus throughout the state have called for regulated hunting in county, state and national parks to help control the crop damage resulting from large deer populations.
"This is an opportunity for you to help support your state troopers get rid of those pesky deer," said Frederick County Farm Bureau President Charles Brault, announcing the program at a recent farm bureau annual meeting.
"If you have, or know of someone who has concerns about letting inexperienced shooters or people you don't know, hunt your farm, Maryland State Police has proposed a solution," Brault said.
A recent study by State Farm Insurance ranked Maryland 14th highest in the nation for deer-related vehicle crashes annually, Brady said, so managing the deer population is the responsible thing to do.
"Annual estimates of deer damage are reported to exceed $2 billion nationwide, including $1 billion in car damage, more than $100 million in agricultural crop damage, $750 million in damage to the timber industry, and more than $250 million in damage to metropolitan households landscape plantings," according to a Wildlife Damage Management Fact Sheet Series by Paul D. Curtis and Kristi L. Sullivan, of Cornell Cooperative Extension, Wildlife Damage Management Program. "These estimates are conservative, and it is often difficult to obtain reliable statistics for wildlife-related losses."
The program is in its infancy and no deer have been harvested, Brady said. But the Frederick County Farm Bureau took the deer fight one step further, recently adopting a resolution that urges the Department of Natural Resources to implement additional programs to decrease deer and other nuisance wildlife in the state to minimize crop and livestock damage.
The local farm bureau's resolution also called for expanding and simplifying the deer crop damage control permit process to allow using weapons of choice by designated shooters, and simplifying the deer harvest reporting process.
The arrangement between law enforcement and agriculture comes none too soon for Mount Airy farmer Lisa Gaver.
"Deer costs farmers a lot of money," Gaver said. "It affects our ability to use best management practices, such as proper crop rotation."
The program was conceived about a year ago during a discussion between Brady and Frederick County Commissioner Billy Shreve. A meeting with Brault followed, and the decision was made to proceed with the program.
"It is hoped that the program would extend to Washington and Montgomery counties and then hopefully statewide at a later point with various law enforcement coordinators," Brady said.
The farmer benefits by reducing deer population on their land; the police officers enjoy a recreational activity and provide venison for their families, the farmer or the Hunters Feeding the Hungry Program, and the public gains by a reduction in the number of deer accidents, Brady said.
Copyright 2013 - The Frederick News-Post, Md.
McClatchy-Tribune News Service
