Shooting bannedin part of flats

DAWN DE BUSK

Frontiersman reporter

MAT SU - Dan Crowson and his wife, Maggie, went bird-watching Saturday around the Palmer Hay Flats, near Cottonwood Creek. He noticed an unusual silence at the site where he frequently takes his friends' kids and joins his Eagle River hunting partner for target-practice sessions.

Crowson also noticed new "No Shooting" signs had sprouted up, letting people know about an already existing regulation against firing guns in the public access areas of the state refuge.

"This makes me so mad. They shut out what I think is the largest number of users in that area without any public input," said Crowson, estimating that 60 percent of that area's recreational users are shooters who target-shoot November through August. During late summer and fall, that group of people often goes moose or duck hunting, he said.

The Alaska Department of Fish and Game posted at least eight signs prohibiting shooting in the Cottonwood Creek area, according to Joe Meehan, Fish and Game's program coordinator for lands and refuges.

The installation of the signs coincided with a cleanup held in April. The mandate has been on the books since 1986, and will likely be enforced by the Alaska Bureau of Wildlife Enforcement, a branch of Alaska State Troopers.

"This really upsets me. I'm a firm believer in using advisory committees, instead of biologists, to make social decisions," Crowson said. He added that if there had been a public meeting prior to the closure, issues like safety and littering could have been addressed.

"Historically, (shooting) hadn't been a problem, so we didn't enforce it. Now, we've decided to take an active part in enforcing the law," Meehan said. He cited public safety and possible wildlife disturbances as reasons for keeping out the shooters.

Alaskans for Palmer Hay Flats members, along with some Valley residents, have been pushing to end target-shooting at two popular spots that provide access to the hay flats: Cottonwood Creek, off Fairview Loop, and Knik River access road, off the Glenn Highway.

"People shoot indiscriminately toward the flats where people are walking with their kids to go fishing, or having a picnic," said Kris Abshire, AFPHF founder. "We have reports all the time of people thinking they're getting shot at, because they hear bullets zinging by."

Dave Hopper, who lives off Fairview Loop and is also an AFPHF board member, agrees there's a problem.

"The hay flats area is like an artillery range. It's despicable. We've got a real dangerous situation here. It's got to stop before someone gets hurt," Hopper said. He explained that target shooters often don't know there are people enjoying a jaunt on the hay flats in the same direction they're shooting.

Signs restricting shooting and dumping trash have been placed at the Knik River access road and at a third site north of the access road - Rabbit Slough.

"There's no target shooting allowed on Knik River Access anymore. We want to get that area developed like Potter's Marsh, with walkways," Hopper said, referring to the popular bird-watching sight in south Anchorage, off the Seward Highway.

"We want to allow appropriate activities in the refuge. The no-target-shooting rule does not influence hunting opportunities in the refuge," Meehan said.

He stressed that there are two groups of gun users: Responsible shooters who often teach their children gun safety during target-practice sessions, and individuals who engage in illegal activity by hauling out and leaving behind objects like computers, refrigerators or hot-water heaters to use as targets.

Crowson, who used to target-shoot near the Palmer hay flats at least twice a month, said he uses biodegradable clay pigeons. He also picks up his shells and other trash. He says he sees other shooters who do the same.

In the Cottonwood Creek area, the responsible shooters say they stop and wait when they see people approaching the bluff that is used as a backstop for target practice, according to Meehan.

"This was a good, safe place, and I hate to see it go," Crowson said.

Dawn De Busk can be reached at 352-2252, or dawn.debusk

@frontiersman.com.