The Arkansas Game and Fish Commission (AGFC) held public meetings in Pocahontas and Jonesboro to get feedback about the Dave Donaldson Black River Wildlife Management Area (DDBR WMA) renovations over the weekend.
DDBR WMA is a popular hunting area for Clay, Greene, and Randolph counties. The AGFC is working on plans to renovate the area to address flooding, conserve the bottomland hardwood waterfowl, and the conservation of Red Oak trees.
“I always thought these meetings were going to be good and productive for everybody. I have that much confidence in what the Arkansas outdoors means to people especially up here,” Director of AGFC, Austin Booth said.
In the presentation, given by Booth, the renovation objectives included providing long-term public access for the land and ensuring sheet flow within the Green Tree Reservoirs (GTRs.)
“There’s concerns and questions, we get that,” Booth said. “Everybody in this room wants what is best for Dave Donaldson.”
Booth admitted that there were obstacles for everyone to work through.
“I’ll call them out right up front, there’s mistrust for the AGFC, unknown of what lies ahead with any renovation plans and assumptions people are making in light of it,” Booth said. “I am not naive enough to think we can have a good enough public meeting today to fix all of these issues today.”
The director said there were no final plans and they did not come there to talk down to the hunters. He added that the meeting was to keep transparency between the agency and community as well as provide updates.
“We do appreciate the commissioners here today and being more transparent and being open to us. I think that the hard thing is trying to get that compromise in place. I don't want to miss the opportunity to tell the commissioners we do appreciate their involvement,” Levi Pillow, former Greene County Judge said.
The AGFC previously had a virtual meeting to address DDBR WMA on Dec.7. Many community members in the meeting and in social media comments requested for the agency to have an in-person public meeting. Booth said the virtual meeting was so they could get as many people across the state as they could.
In the Dec. meeting, Booth said: "The sole motivation for sharing the update that we did was to honor the transparent and proactive communication that many of you have asked for.
Community Concern
Despite communication and transparency, there were still concerns about different aspects of the project. The main concern was how the renovations will affect the duck hunting season. A worry is the renovations will cut the season in half or run the ducks off.
Some felt the AGFC was not listening to them.
“It does feel like you're not listening, I truly believe that you are a good person (Booth.) Do what's right for people. Why do you guys continue to take the wrong stance on everything, I don’t know. Please do the right thing,” Matt Graves, a community member, said during the meeting.
The director responded saying despite not always seeing eye to eye he respects Graves' passion. Booth also added that all the commissioners who were there would not be there if they did not care about the community's thoughts.
“If conservation was easy then everyone would do it well. We are certainly grateful for everyone coming here tonight,” Booth said.
State Representative Jeremy Wooldridge was one of the members of the audience. He calls Dave Donaldson not just an NEA treasure but a national treasure.
According to Wooldridge, the area's uniqueness is what sets it apart from other WMAs and GTRs in the state. He said when other areas of the state don’t have water DDBR does because it can artificially flood.
“It doesn't cost us anything because we’re not pumping it or doing it through wells. We’ve figured out a dam system in the river that allows that head pressure to build,” Wooldridge said.
As the representative of District 1, which includes the DDBR WMA, he is concerned about the commission's plans. One of the reasons is the impact on the area’s economy. In 2023 statewide duck hunting brought in 70 million dollars annually for the 60-day duck season.
Wooldridge's ideal outcome would be a “win” for everyone involved. He said Dave Donaldson is 27-thousand acres and the GTR makes up 55-hundred acres inside it.
“If the AGFC would refocus the regrowths of Red Oaks on that other 23-thousand acres everyone wins,” Wooldridge said. “Leave the GTRs alone, beef up the infrastructure. You get your Red Oaks and we continue to duck hunt”
According to the AGFC, this project's engineering and design will continue through 2024. Actual construction is estimated to begin in the summer of 2025.
The area received extensive timber damage from 1993 to 2000 from unauthorized releases by the U.S Army Corps of Engineers at Clearwater Lake in Missouri which the AGFC took to court. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in favor of the AGFC in a judgment over $15.6 million for timer loss, interest, and legal fees. 6,990 acres of timber were killed by a DDBR WMA inside and out of the GTRs. 11,633 acres were damaged.
“For those who say we don’t care about ducks, people, or trees is wrong,” Booth said. “We understand the importance of our natural resources. We want to preserve that. This is a balance we have to get done.”
Booth clarified when he says he doesn't just mean the AGFC he means the waterfowl community.
“This has been my point to the directors that the AGFC should be providing public access to Arkansans. To create hunting and outdoor experiences and when they can be conservationist.
One should now outbalance the other. That’s my frustration at this time,” Wooldridge said.
Wooldridge said he feels like all the priority is on regrowing the bottom wood hardwood at the chagrin of the duck hunter.
“If you're going to take all of the people's tax dollars and you're going to put them in a project in a direction all of the people don’t like, that’s bad policy,” Wooldridge said.
Multiple AGFC Law enforcement officers were on hand for both of Saturday's public forums.
“It begs the question for me, if your public policy is so poor you think you need that level of law enforcement to have a meeting with the public then maybe you have policy trouble,” Wooldridge said. “I was disappointed in the level of enforcement that the AGFC felt they needed to have a meeting with their constituents.
The Director of AGFC didn’t directly acknowledge the police presence during the Saturday meeting but the Director did say the agency has gotten threats of violence and “everything under the sun.”
“The AGFC had a public meeting and I appreciate that. I think this is a friendly area of the state. If you talk to folks as a whole, their outdoor enthusiasts, they want to be supportive of the AGFC.” Wooldridge said.
Since 2012, the agency has spent more than $1.5 million on mulching, removing debris, invading vegetation, and reclaiming more than 49 miles of natural drainages in the WMA.
More information on the project can be found at https://www.agfc.com/wma/dave-donaldson-black-river-wma
