ADCNR's Blankenship Provides Update to Conservation Advisory Board

Severe weather last weekend hindered travel across the state, which limited the number of Alabama Conservation Advisory Board (CAB) members who were able to meet at Troy University for the second CAB meeting of the year.

Being one member short of a quorum to conduct any official business, the CAB members were apprised of what had occurred affecting the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (ADCNR) since the March meeting.

Conservation Commissioner Chris Blankenship updated the Board on the latest session of the Alabama Legislature. He thanked Deputy Commissioner Ed Poolos and Charlanna Skaggs, ADCNR's General Counsel, and the legal staff for their work during the session.

Commissioner Blankenship highlighted several bills that were considered this year, including HB1 that dealt with a license increase for seafood dealers in the state.

"HB1 was introduced by Rep. (Chip) Brown (Hollinger's Island)," he said. "It added $200 to the seafood dealer's license, and that money was initially going to go to the Department of Public Health for seafood testing. Our Department, the Department of Agriculture, the Alabama Grocers' Association, and others were able to work with Representative Brown and Senator Sessions so that $200 added to the seafood dealers license will now go to the 'Sweet Grown Alabama' program under the Department of Agriculture and Industries to promote Alabama seafood."

HB437 dealt with developing a shark warning system. Commissioner Blankenship said the original language would have made it difficult to implement. Compromise legislation was passed, and ADCNR will implement a workable shark warning system in the next few months so that if a verified, unprovoked attack occurs, a warning system will be in place to inform the public.

SB64 dealt with aquatic nuisance plants and the removal of those plants from the waterways if they are cut off.

"If people or companies cut a nuisance plant down in the water, they have to remove and not leave them in the water to rot," Commissioner Blankenship said.

SB171 prohibits the use of motorized vehicles, including ATVs, off-road vehicles and scooters, on submerged lands, such as creeks and streams, and below navigable waters. Violations are classified as Class C misdemeanors.

HB509 was legislation that dealt with deer breeders across the state. The legislation was strongly opposed by ADCNR and numerous national and state wildlife organizations.

"It passed last week with an amendment that we negotiated where we will not go in any deer breeder facilities that are in a CWD (chronic wasting disease) zone and kill deer for testing without a link to a positive somewhere else in the facility," Commissioner Blankenship said. "There was also a section in that legislation that requires us by March 1, 2026, to work with the industry and others, like the Wildlife Society, the Alabama Wildlife Federation, universities, the state veterinarian and our staff to develop a method to be able to allow movement of deer from deer breeders in a CWD zone to facilities outside the zone if they meet certain criteria we will establish by rule.

"I want to recognize the work done on this bill by the members of this CAB, the hunting public, the Alabama Wildlife Federation, The Wildlife Society, the Boone & Crockett Club and the Teddy Roosevelt Conservation Partnership and many others. There were many groups that were advocates for the Department concerning that legislation that got it to a place we could live with."

Commissioner Blankenship said good news also came out of the legislative session with the passing of HB186 that set the appropriations for executive, legislative and judicial agencies of the state.

"The budget for the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources will be $458.7 million dollars, the largest budget we've ever had," he said. "That includes $6 million from the General Fund for capital improvements. Before two years ago, we had never received any money from the General Fund. This is the third year, and we have received $18 million total to do infrastructure work on shooting ranges, state lakes, State Parks projects and the (M. Barnett Lawley) Forever Wild Field Trial Area. We appreciate the support from the Legislature.

"We also received $1 million for implementation of the State Wildlife Action Plan. I had the opportunity to go down (Friday) with (CAB) Chairman (Joey) Dobbs, Deputy Chief of Staff of the Governor, Brooks McClendon, and others, and we released a whole bunch of indigo snakes in Conecuh National Forest. More than 325 indigo snakes have been released through that program. The goal of these stocking releases is to get this species delisted from the Endangered Species Act."

Commissioner Blankenship also updated the Board on the numerous boating access projects completed or underway.

"We've got plenty of work underway," he said. "The Weeks Bay Ramp parking is under construction. We cut the ribbon at the County Road 6 Ramp in Baldwin County that was funded through GOMESA. It was a $7 million project that was very well done. The Billy Goat Hole Ramp on Dauphin Island is under construction. The Chocolatta Bay Ramp parking will soon be done on the Causeway in Mobile. We have a ribbon cutting planned for McCarty's Ferry Ramp on June 10. We recently finished the Highway 77 Ramp in Rainbow City."

Commissioner Blankenship highlighted the fact that Alabama Tourism will be celebrating the Year of Alabama Trails for the next two years.

"ADCNR has more than 500 miles of trails in our State Parks System and close to 400 miles of trails in Forever Wild property for hiking, biking, horseback riding, canoeing, kayaking and other uses," he said. "This will be the emphasis of our marketing over the next two years, promoting the trails on our ADCNR properties. I appreciate the work our staff and partners do in building and maintaining those trails."

State Lands Director Patti McCurdy gave an update on hunting leases that State Lands manages for various state agencies for an additional revenue source.

"One of the ways we try to drive revenue off those land assets is through a five-year hunting lease that we offer to the public by auction," McCurdy said. "We're offering leases on 140 properties that stretch across 32 counties."

McCurdy urges anyone interested to go to http://www.outdooralabama.com/2025HuntingLeaseAuction for details on the auction process.

Commissioner Blankenship also took the opportunity to bid farewell to Chuck Sykes, Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries Director, who will become Executive Director of the Council to Advance Hunting and the Shooting Sports on July 1.

"I appreciate the work that Chuck has done and the friendship we've had over the last 12-plus years," Commissioner Blankenship said. "Just to mention a few of his accomplishments and things that have happened under his tenure, one of those is the implementation of the SOA program. The Special Opportunity Area hunts were something that was brand-new for Alabama, and that has gone over extremely well. He also proposed extending the deer season to February 10 and using science to do that. He and his staff looked at populations across the state, and some deer start rutting activity earlier. And the season was extended to February 10 for most of the state, based on the rut and the science that our staff has done. That was big change.

"Another thing he's done is propose the use of Forever Wild for matching funds for the Pittman-Robertson money, adding about 50,000 acres for public hunting. That was a huge change and has been very successful. He was also president of AFWA (Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies) over the last year. He's been very important in terms of national leadership on issues that are important to us in Alabama and the national level."

Sykes has expanded shooting sports opportunities with range construction ramping up. He also expanded the waterfowl opportunities.

"We spend more money on duck hunting and duck habitat than ever before," Commissioner Blankenship said. "Changes were made to turkey season and to the alligator season to give people more opportunities to hunt.

"Whether you like or dislike the changes in the Department over the past 12 years, I think you'd have to say that Chuck always had the long-term health of the resource as the guiding factor in recommendations to the CAB, to the Commissioner and internal decisions of Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries. And that is what we want from all our directors, to do what's best for the resource."

During public testimony, two people asked the Board to consider moving the start of turkey season earlier in March. Board member Jeff Martin asked Sykes to address that situation.

Sykes explained that if he had a choice, the season wouldn't start until April 1, and the reason people complain about turkeys not gobbling is because of hunters.

"I respectfully disagree because I hunted in Choctaw County the last day of the season (May 8) and heard five turkeys gobble," Sykes said. "I called up two at 10 o'clock that were gobbling like 2-year-olds on opening day, whatever opening day is.

"Hunting pressure curbs gobbling, not the time of the year, at least not in May. Just because it's May doesn't mean the turkeys quit gobbling. I had not hunted those two properties all year, and the turkeys were fresh. They worked like they were supposed to. The reason turkeys quit gobbling is, one, they're in somebody's freezer, or they've been shot at, spooked or whatever, and they just quit. Pressure dictates gobbling, not the time of year in March, April and May."

Sykes said they need to put their personal preferences aside and do what's best for the resource.

An additional CAB meeting has been scheduled for Thursday, May 29 at the Alabama Department of Agriculture and Industries, Richard Beard Auditorium, 1445 Federal Dr., in Montgomery, Alabama. The meeting will begin at 10:30 a.m. Because public comment was received at the May 10 meeting, no public comment will be accepted at the May 29 meeting

On the agenda will be hunting seasons and bag limits as well as recommended changes by the Marine Resources Division regarding saltwater fishing.