During
the on-going coronavirus
crisis, officers with the Ohio Department of Natural Resources’
Division of Wildlife will not be
performing
“routine”
fishing and hunting license checks.
Nor,
it would appear, conduct clandestine law enforcement operations to
check for suspicious and illegal activity. That would seemingly
include undercover work along such places as the Maumee River, long a
hot-spot for early spring walleye fishing.
This,
from an inquiry made to the agency by “Ohio Outdoor News.”
Instead,
the Natural Resources Department says, officers will only approach
the public “...in non-emergency situation(s).”
But
the agency did not elaborate as to what constitutes either an
emergency or non-emergency situation, though clarification was sought
but was not forthcoming.
The
Natural Resources Department did say its staff will be “...monitoring
our anglers from the shore, checking bald eagle nest reports, and
monitoring our wildlife properties.”
However,
sources within the Natural Resources Department’s law enforcement
apparatus as well as agency retirees paint an entirely different
picture.
Likewise,
several county park districts say their respective ranger staffs
continue to interact with the public they serve, including the
Metroparks Toledo.
This
metro parks operates the famous Side Cut Park, which is a preeminent
Maumee River early spring walleye-run fishing hole.
Asked
about ranger staffing and activity level of its 25-member ranger
staff, Metroparks Toledo director of communications Scott Carpenter
said the agency is encouraging its officers to continue interacting
with the public, but exercise caution at the same time.
“Some
of them may be staying in their patrol cars more and not out on foot
patrols or on bikes as much, but, no, we want to see people out as
much as possible,” Carpenter said.
As
for any closure of Side Cut Park, that is not an option the parks
system is considering at the moment, Carpenter says as well.
“Is
there a safer place for people to be than standing in a river,
fishing for walleye?” Carpenter said.
Lake
Metroparks in Lake County also has a fully engaged ranger staff. Its
officers continue to actively patrol and engage the public, including
at that agency’s several popular steelhead fishing units along both
the Grand and Chagrin rivers and several of the former’s
tributaries, a parks official said.
Similarly,
the Geauga Parks District’s seven-ranger staff continues to operate
as close to normal as possible. This interaction is being done via
patrol car and on foot, said agency spokeswoman, Sandy Ward.
“(Our)
ranger operations are still
‘business as usual’ currently; no changes in protocol, beyond
perhaps the six-foot
social distancing guidelines staff will be inclined to follow,”
Ward says.
All
of which is in sharp contrast to how the Natural Resources Department
is addressing as to how its law enforcement staff operates.
“Our
priority right now is the health of the public and our officers, so
they are practicing responsible interactions whenever possible which
means things might look different than people are accustomed to,”
said Sarah Wickham, the Natural Resources Department’s chief of
communications.
“Our
wildlife officers are a vital part of our operation. We are working
to protect our officers and the public while they do their very
important work in this unique time.”
Yet
not every Wildlife officer agrees, with some of them saying the
Natural Resources Department is requiring its commissioned staff to
work at home, not from home.
“They
have all of us staying home. Not allowed to go out and patrol,”
said one commissioned officer who requested anonymity.
“(They
are) dissolving the covert operations unit, as well. We need more
boots in the field not more supervisors. They want to save money but
they are creating more top heavy positions,” the source said.
- Jeffrey L. Frischkorn
JFrischk@Ameritech.net
JFrischk4@gmail.com
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