Fayette County has largest allocation ever
New twist in antlerless deer license process Beginning Monday, the Game Commission will begin accepting antlerless deer license applications for the state’s 22 new Wildlife Management Units.
Licenses will be issued by management units rather than by county as in years past, but each county still received a specific allotment of licenses, much the same as previous years.
This year, Fayette County has the highest allotment of licenses that is has ever had, according to the county treasurer’s office.
The total number of licenses is 18,050 with 10,400 earmarked for WMU 2C, which includes the entire county west of Route 119. The remaining 7,650 will be issued for WMU 2A, which lies west of Route 119.
Fayette County’s allocation exceeds by 4,500 the total of 13,500 that were available last year, and that number topped the 2001-2002 allocation of 12,100.
The Greene County treasurer’s office has 14,400 licenses available, which is the county’s smallest allocation in three years, indicating that perhaps the new deer management initiatives are beginning to achieve the desired effect.
Greene County’s allocation for the 2002-2003 seasons was 19,100, which was an increase from the 16,800 licenses that were available the previous year.
The allocation for Westmoreland County was reduced by roughly 3,000 licenses. This year’s allocation is 28,850. Of that total, 11,700 are earmarked for WMU 2C, which includes most of the county. The county is also within three other WMUs.
Wildlife Management Unit 2A is allocated 1,800 licenses, WMU 2B gets 9,450 and WMU 2D receives 2,900.
Washington County’s allocation has also been reduced to 22,950 from a high of 31,900 last year and a total of 28,600 the previous year.
The bulk of the licenses, 17,100, will be issued in WMU 2A, and the remaining 5,850 are allocated for WMU 2B.
Somerset County is always the first area county to sell out, but this year there may actually be some unsold licenses available as the allocation was increased from 17,600 to 22,500.
This year’s allocation in Somerset County is a major increase from the 12,000 licenses that were allocated for the 2001-2002 season.
The issuing of licenses by wildlife management unit rather than by individual counties is a new twist and will require special attention by applicants.
First, positively identify the management unit in which you wish to purchase a license by checking the master map on Page 48 of the new Pennsylvania Digest of Hunting and Trapping Regulations.
To make sure you have the unit you really want, check the boundaries of the unit, which can be found on following pages of the Digest.
Once you are sure which unit you want to apply to hunt in, carefully fill out the application.
Be sure to use the new official yellow envelope.
To be sure your application is not rejected, make your check payable to “County Treasurer.” Do not make it out to any specific county treasurer, as your license could be processed by any number of treasurer’s offices within the management unit.
Somerset County is a good example. While you may only plan to hunt in Somerset County, six counties other than Somerset can process Management Area 2C licenses.
Be sure to put return postage on the new yellow official envelope. Envelopes without postage are sent to a dead letter file in Harrisburg.
Each wildlife management unit has its own mailing address, and address labels are included with the application envelope. To avoid any mix-up or delay, make sure the WMU number on the sticker matches that of the area in which you want to hunt.
If you follow the instructions, you won’t have any trouble.
The mistakes noted here have been pointed out by the county treasurers, who have return numerous applications each year or place those without postage in a dead letter file.
If you haven’t purchased your license yet, don’t fret. There is still time, but I wouldn’t wait longer than a week.
Unlike other years, flintlock hunters are not pressured to buy their license as early.
This year hunters can wait until Nov. 8 before flintlock license sales close.
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DUNBAR CREEK PROJECT: This year’s annual Dunbar Creek improvement project will take place at 8 a.m. Saturday.
Dunbar Sportsmen’s Club President John Maddas asks all volunteers to meet at the upper parking lot on Dunbar Creek.
The Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission will supply all tools and materials.
Individuals or groups wanting to volunteer their labor for the project can contact Maddas at 724-277-4258.
Food and refreshments will be available at the work site.
Rod Schoener is the Herald-Standard outdoors writer.