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 Alaska
Moose Federation E-News
Alaska Moose Federation
E-Newsletter June 2, 2005
The winter of 2003/2004 is
officially the 5th highest in southcentral Alaska's history.
The result of all this snow were
record numbers of moose/vehicle
collisions (over 1300 statewide)
and moose encounters on school
grounds, etc. throughout the
Anchorage, Mat-Su and Kenai
areas. This record snow fall
enabled The Alaska Moose
Federation to propose covering
all cost and manpower to help
addressing ever growing moose
populations in our cities. Greg
Roczicka (AMF Co-chair), Gary
Olson (Chair) and others drafted
wording for Senate Bill 329, the
"Nuisance Moose Bill". This bill
allows The Alaska Moose
Federation or another
like-minded organization to
begin transplanting moose, under
the oversight of Alaska
Department of Fish & Game out of
harms way to other areas of the
state to assist local
populations to recover in
number. Specific transplant
criteria already in place with
the Department will not allow
the transplanting of moose into
areas with inadequate habitat
and/or an unbalanced eco-system.
Moose have been moved in the
past in the 1950's to Copper
River Delta, Kalgin Island and
Burner's Bay resulting in
thriving populations in areas
they were not in before. The
individual over our program
working on our behalf is
biologist Bud Burris who is the
former state biologist who moved
the caribou to the Kenai
Peninsula and the Muskox to the
North Slope of Alaska. Something
must be done to help alleviate
these growing populations of
moose in our cities that are
ending up on our cars and
schools. The moose deserve
better.
The "Nuisance Moose Bill" was
sponsored by State Senator Con
Bunde. In the House it was
sponsored by Representative
Nancy Dahlstrom. The bill passed
the Senate 15-4 and then the
House by 25-14. Anchorage School
District Superintendent Carol
Comeau sent us to Juneau with
the message that if any
legislators are thinking of
voting against this bill, please
have them call her so she can
tell them how bad aggressive
moose encounters are becoming on
our school grounds. The bill is
now awaiting the Governor's
signature. This bill passed
because of the efforts of the
Alaska Moose Federation members'
calls and letters, the airing of
the issue on the radio with
advisory board member Rick
Rydell on KENI 650 and primarily
the first-person examples
provided by Maggie Strobbe and
more importantly her daughter
Hanna Strobbe who was stomped in
the head and chest last summer
on O'Malley Road. It is a
miracle she is with us today.
The bill, once signed, will
allow the transplanting of moose
away from roads and school yards
to areas with ample habitat
where the moose will have a
fighting chance of survival
rather than facing the
inevitable front of a car.
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