Legislative items on conservation radar

The Idaho Conservation League and Conservation Voters for Idaho are teaming up to educate Idahoans about what's in store for Idaho's 66th Legislature.

At 5 p.m. Thursday, a free hour-long Legislative 101 webinar will provide information on conservation topics that are expected to make an appearance during the legislative session, which commences Monday.

These include climate, public lands, wildlife, wolves, elk, chronic wasting disease, the Snake River and other issues that matter to Idahoans.

"We’ve done it for several years, at least four," Idaho Conservation League external relations director Jonathan Oppenheimer said Friday. "It's useful as far as educating people about the process and how they can participate in the legislature."

He said chronic wasting disease in Idaho is of particular concern as cases have been reported among deer in the Riggins area in the past few months.

Chronic wasting disease damages portions of the brain and causes progressive loss of body condition, behavioral changes, excessive salivation and death. It is a threat to animals and the humans who depend on those animals.

"It's a big issue that has the potential to really decimate wildlife populations, and thousands of Idahoans fill their freezers every year with venison," Oppenheimer said. "One of the vectors is domestic elk farming. Many states have outlawed these captive wildlife farms, but Idaho has not."

He said Idaho has about 20 elk farms, which have to test only about 10% of their animals for the disease.

"That has been a concern for several years," Oppenheimer said. "There should be more consideration given to the tens of thousands of elk and deer hunters in the state and native wildlife than we give to the roughly 20 elk farmers."

Conservation Voters for Idaho's legislative and lands coordinator Hollie Conde said public lands issues are perpetual in Idaho and will be on the radar this session, as are lands access and "the taxable value that's lost out on having so much public land in the state, water quality, water quantity, the budget surplus that comes down and how it gets divvied up across the state will come up and if any of that goes to conservation."

The webinar aims to engage Idahoans with those who represent them while providing tools to track bills and legislation, connect with legislators and deliver testimony remotely.

"People tend to get wrapped up in what’s happening in (Washington) D.C.," Conde said. "Local politics affect us the most, by far. What happens in the State House will have real world consequences on your day-to-day life, far more than what happens in D.C. It’s important folks at least know it’s happening and have a basic understanding of how the legislature works and know they can be part of the process beyond just voting."

Register here: https://www.idahoconservation.org/event/legislative-101-2/