The Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries Commission (LWFC) approved a Declaration of Emergency (DE) and Notice of Intent (NOI) to expand the Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) Control Area in northeast central Louisiana, effective May 1. LDWF Deer Program Manager Jonathan Bordelon says this follows the detection of a CWD-positive wild deer in Catahoula Parish.
“And as a result we have enacted our CWD control area response in reference to that Catahoula positive.”
The DE extends the control area to include a 25-mile radius around the detection site, adding parts of Caldwell, Richland, La Salle, and expanding areas in Franklin and Concordia parishes. Bordelon says the DE prohibits baiting, supplemental feeding…
“In addition to that, there are prohibitions on the movement of certain deer carcass parts in an effort to stem further spread of the disease.”
The NOI proposes a 15-mile core area within the control zone where baiting and supplemental feeding are banned, with limited allowances beyond it. Bordelon says the NOI is subject to public comment and possible changes before final adoption, expected by August.
“The decision as far as delineation that is part of that rule-making process. So, there is a chance that the established boundaries for the Declaration of Emergency may not be the same boundaries that we have at the NOI process.”
CWD is a fatal, untreatable disease affecting deer, and hunters are urged to have harvested deer tested. LDWF offers free testing services.
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