Hunters get second shot at doves beginning Friday

PHOENIX – Arizona dove hunters will be able to double their wing-shooting pleasure when the state’s “second” season begins Friday, November 24.

Unlike the 15-day season that begins September 1, the late season lasts 45 days and runs through January 7, 2018. There still is a 15-bird daily bag limit, all of which must be mourning doves. The possession limit remains 45 mourning doves after opening day, of which no more than 15 may be taken in any one day. As always, there is an unlimited daily bag and possession limit for the invasive Eurasian collared-dove.

Here are a few things to remember to make the most of the upcoming season:

A license for youth hunters ages 10 to 17 is only $5. Children 9 and under do not need a license when accompanied by a licensed adult (two children per adult). Licenses can be purchased from any license dealer, regional department office or online at https://license.azgfd.gov/home.xhtml. NOTE: All department offices will be closed Thursday, November 23, in observance of Thanksgiving. All offices will reopen 8 a.m. Friday, November 24.
Hunters 18 and older must purchase an Arizona migratory bird stamp for $5 from any license dealer, regional department office or online at https://license.azgfd.gov/home.xhtml.
Shooting hours are 30 minutes before legal sunrise until legal sunset. On opening day in the Phoenix area, legal sunrise will be 7:08 a.m. Figure up to nine minutes earlier for eastern areas and nine minutes later for western areas.
One fully feathered wing must remain attached to each harvested dove until it reaches the hunter’s home.
Keep in mind that dove hunters are responsible for cleaning up after themselves. Shell casings (shotgun hulls) and associated debris constitute litter and must be picked up and packed out. Littering while hunting or fishing are revocable violations, and a conviction can result in the loss of hunting privileges for up to five years.
For everything “dove,” visit https://www.azgfd.com/hunting/species/smallgame/mourningdove.

Dove hunters play an important role in conservation. Wildlife and Sport Fish Restoration Program (WSFR) funds are comprised of excise taxes collected on the sale of hunting and fishing equipment (including 11 percent on ammunition), the benefit of which comes right back to Arizona for habitat improvements, shooting ranges, boating access and more.

Here’s a fishing license deal ​​​​​​​you’ll want to gobble up


PHOENIX — Happy Thanksgiving from the Arizona Game and Fish family to yours! At AZGFD, we are grateful for many things – especially you. Thank you for making Arizona’s outdoor heritage a part of your life.

To express our appreciation, between now and December 1, 2017, we’re offering a 25% discount on Arizona adult general fishing licenses and community fishing licenses purchased online. And as always, youth licenses (for ages 10-17) are only $5.

This is a great time of year to get outdoors, enjoy Arizona’s spectacular weather and scenery, and spend quality time fishing with family, friends and out-of-town visitors. Invite them to experience their own Arizona outdoor adventure!

Thank you for your loyalty, and may the upcoming holiday season be filled with happiness, BIG fish, and lots of outdoor memories.

FISHING LICENSES
General Fishing: Valid for take of all fish species statewide, including at Community Fishing waters.
Available to Residents and Non-residents Resident $37 Non-Resident $55
Community Fishing: Allows take of all fish species at Community Fishing waters.
Available to Residents and Non-residents Resident $24 Non-Resident $24

COMBINATION HUNTING AND FISHING LICENSES Resident $57 Non-Resident $160
Hunt/Fish Combo: Valid for take of all fish species statewide (including at Community Fishing waters), small game, fur-bearing animals, predatory animals, certain nongame animals, and upland game birds. A valid tag or stamp is required for the take of big game animals and migratory game birds. Using this license to hunt big game requires a permit-tag (obtained through the big game drawing), or a nonpermit-tag (obtained at any Game and Fish office or at a Game and Fish authorized license dealer).

Still time to enter Polaris Ranger drawing to benefit SECC charity campaign​​​​​​​

Each year the State Employees Charitable Campaign (SECC) gives State of Arizona employees the opportunity to voluntarily contribute monetary donations to support nonprofit agencies. The funds raised by state employees support more than 400 charities.

The state employee pledge drive for this year recently concluded, but the public still has an opportunity to assist the SECC campaign. Wildlife for Tomorrow, an independent 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that works closely with the Arizona Game and Fish Department to provide additional support for projects and education activities where traditional resources aren’t adequate, is offering, through a raffle, the chance to win a Polaris custom camouflage Ranger, generously donated by RideNow Powersports. Raffle tickets can be purchased online until December 2, 2017. The winning ticket will be drawn at random no later than December 8.

For more information or to purchase raffle tickets, visit the SECC website at https://secc.az.gov/2017-prizes-and-rules and click on the tabs to “WFT Polaris Ranger Raffle” and “WFT Raffle Rules.”

ADOT seeks input on I-15 Virgin River Bridge No. 1 rehabilitation project

Virgin River Bridge #6 – ADOT Photo

PPHOENIX – The Arizona Department of Transportation is seeking input from community members on a bridge rehabilitation project along Interstate 15 in the Virgin River Gorge with a public hearing on November 29 in Littlefield.

Those attending the hearing, to be held from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Beaver Dam Lodge, 452 Old Highway 91 North, can review and comment on the draft environmental assessment for the bridge project. A formal presentation is scheduled from 6 to 6:30 p.m.

The hearing will present three issues identified with Bridge No. 1 along I-15 through the Virgin River Gorge as well as a preferred design solution to replace the bridge and widen the roadway shoulders.

The draft environmental assessment, which is available for review through Dec. 14, can be reviewed online at www.azdot.gov/i15ea and at the following locations during business hours:

Mesquite Library, 121 W. First North Street, Mesquite, Nevada
Washington County Library-St. George Branch, 88 W. 100 South Street, Street George, Utah
Beaver Dam Lodge, 452 Old Highway 91 North, Littlefield, Arizona

Outside of the public hearing, community members can provide comments on the draft environmental assessment through the following ways:

  1. In writing: I-15, Bridge 1, 101 N. First Avenue, Suite 2600, Phoenix, AZ 85003
  2. Online: www.azdot.gov/VRB1Comments
  3. Email: projects @adot.gov
  4. Phone: 855.712.8530

No state highway construction closures over Thanksgiving weekend

PHOENIX – Over Thanksgiving weekend, state and local agencies will focus on keeping motorists safe and placing equipment and resources along heavily traveled highways to help move traffic should incidents occur.

Motorists will play key roles in keeping traffic moving, too, by making smart driving decisions that won’t result in serious crashes that ruin road trips and create travel delays. Drivers are urged to use caution over the holiday weekend in existing work zones and in three “holiday travel corridors” that will receive extra enforcement and resources to minimize travel delays.

The Arizona Department of Transportation and its contractors won’t schedule construction closures along state highways from Friday through late Monday evening. Road restrictions for ongoing projects will remain in place.

In an effort to reduce crashes and delays that result from speeding and driver inattention, speed limits will be lowered during peak holiday travel periods on a winding stretch of Interstate 17 north of Phoenix. ADOT will reduce speed limits by 10 mph on I-17 between New River and Sunset Point Rest Area. Temporary signs will advise drivers of the lower speed limits. For example, areas where the speed limit is ordinarily 65 mph will have a speed limit of 55 mph.

ADOT is emphasizing safety in three high-traffic holiday travel corridors: Interstate 17 between north Phoenix and Flagstaff, Interstate 10 between Phoenix and Tucson and State Route 87 between Mesa and Payson. Along those routes, ADOT crews will strategically stage equipment, such as loaders and utility trucks, minimizing travel delays with faster response times to crashes and stalled vehicles.

The Governor’s Office of Highway Safety is working with state troopers, deputy sheriffs and local police officers on a holiday DUI enforcement campaign across Arizona that will patrol state highways, county roads and city streets. The holiday season DUI Task Force Campaign involves 10 separate statewide task forces and 84 different law enforcement agencies and will run through the New Year’s holiday.

Last year, 10 people died in 10 fatal traffic collisions during the holiday weekend on Arizona’s state and local roadways. Impairment was a factor in five of the fatal crashes. To encourage smart driving decisions, overhead signs will display safety messages, as well as current traffic conditions

ADOT has not scheduled any closures or work during the holiday weekend, but travelers should be aware that restrictions in existing work-zones will remain in place. This can include I-10 in Phoenix’s West Valley, I-40 near Kingman and northbound State Route 87 south of Payson. State routes 366 and 473 have closed for the winter season.

Because unexpected delays can occur due to crashes and stalled vehicles, motorists traveling during the holiday weekend should:

· Pack extra drinking water and snacks
· Avoid the busiest travel times, if possible
· Get plenty of rest before driving
· Check vehicles, including tire pressure, belts and fluid levels
· If traveling to the high country, pack cold-weather clothes and blankets

Real-time highway conditions are available on ADOT’s Arizona Traveler Information site at az511.gov, by calling 511 and through ADOT’s Twitter feed, @ArizonaDOT. When a freeway closure or other major traffic event occurs, our free app available at ADOTAlerts.com will send critical information directly to app users in affected areas – where possible, in advance of alternate routes.

Valerie Wyant elected President of the Clerk’s Association

FLAGSTAFF — Clerk of the Superior Court, Valerie Wyant has been named the President-Elect of the Arizona Association of Superior Court Clerks (AASCC). The President works as the liaison between the AASCC, the Arizona Supreme Court’s Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC), the Arizona Association of Counties (AACo), state legislators and various other agencies.

“I am thrilled for the opportunity to represent the Clerk’s Association in the leadership role of President,” said Association President-Elect Valerie Wyant. “In the role of President, I will have the amazing opportunity to participate in and work with a number of statewide and national committees and associations. It is truly an honor to represent the fine women and men who serve as Clerks of the Court in Arizona.”

Wyant worked in the office of the Navajo County Clerk of Superior Court for 13 years, and one year as the Clerk of Superior Court in 2010. Wyant was appointed Chief Deputy Clerk of Superior Court, Coconino County in January 2011. In 2014, she was elected Clerk of Superior Court for Coconino County.

The Clerk of the Superior Court’s Office was established by the Arizona Constitution as one of several elected offices with specific and special duties, serves as the official record keepers and financial officers for the Superior Court. The Clerk of the Superior Court services more than 500 state statutes and court rules.

Wyant will assume the role of President effective January 2018.

Cow elk poaching case being investigated near Strawberry

FLAGSTAFF – The Arizona Game and Fish Department is investigating the poaching of a cow elk, which occurred on November 10 or 11 in southern Game Management Unit 5A about 10 miles north of Strawberry.

The elk was found near U.S. Forest Service Road 308H, which is a closed road near USFS Road 308. Evidence found at the scene indicates the poachers were likely camped off the closed road and they also illegally killed an unidentified non-game bird in the same location. There was no elk season going on at the time the poaching occurred.

Investigating officers also discovered bloody fingerprints on litter found at the scene and possible DNA evidence was recovered as well.

“We are hoping the public may remember seeing a camp on the closed road during this particular weekend and can provide some vehicle or suspect descriptions,” Game and Fish Wildlife Officer Garrett Fabian said. “Getting some information now means we won’t have to wait a long time for lab results to come back to identify the suspects.”

Anyone with information about the case can call the Department’s Operation Game Thief Hotline toll-free at (800) 352-0700 or use the online form at www.azgfd.gov/ogt. Callers should provide case number 17-004469, information obtained will remain confidential and callers may remain anonymous upon request.

A reward of up to $2,500 is being offered in this case for information leading to the arrest of the violator(s).

To learn more about Operation Game Thief, visit www.azgfd.gov/ogt.

Queen Creek TMDL comment period extended.

The Arizona Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ) has extended the period for comments relating to the Queen Creek TMDL. The extension allows for comments to be emailed or postmarked by December 5, 2017.

The View Public Notices and Related Documents can be found here.

Any questions you have regarding the extended comment period or the TMDL document itself can be directed to:

Kyle Palmer
P: 602-771-4540
kwp@azdeq.gov

ADEQ encourages and values your input and participation in our process.