Friends of the Lower Suwannee & Cedar Keys National Wildlife Refuges

  • Home
  • About Us
    • The Board
    • Our Mission and Goals
    • Our Code of Ethics
    • Volunteer Projects
    • Calendar of Events
    • Contact Us
  • Join Friends
    • Join or Renew
    • Members
  • Maps/Trails
    • Interactive Refuge Map
    • Lower Suwannee NWR Map
    • Walk/Bike/Drive Trails >
      • Adventures on the Refuges
      • Barnett Creek Trail
      • Bats of the Refuge
      • Butterflies of the Refuge
      • CR 349 Refuge Cycling Tour
      • Dennis Creek Trail
      • Dixie Mainline- FWS Guide
      • Hiking Trails Along the Dixie Mainline
      • Nature Drive Guide
      • River Walk & Tram Ridge Trail
      • Shell Mound Trail
      • Turkey Foot Loop Trail
    • Paddling Trails >
      • Overview
      • Details: Paddles 1 - 4 >
        • 1. Fishbone Creek
        • 2. Shired Creek
        • 3. Sanders Creek
        • 4. Cat Island
      • Details: Paddles 5 - 8 >
        • 5. Lock Creek
        • 6. Lock Shingle Creek
        • 7. Gopher River
        • 8. Sandfly Creek
      • Details: Paddles 9 - 12 >
        • 9. Barnett McCormick Creek
        • 10. Shell Mound - Hog Island
        • 11. Shell Mound - Long Cabbage Island
        • 12. Atsena Otie
    • Kayak-fishing Trails
    • Escape to the Refuge Video
  • Science, Butterflies
    • iNaturalist Project
    • Butterfly Primer
    • Shell Mound Archaeological Guide
  • Records Archive
    • News Briefs and Ibis
    • Minutes
    • Financial Reports
    • Bylaws
    • Archives
  • Interactive Map

Impacts of the Shutdown

1/28/2019

0 Comments

 
Picture
The "blue goose" icon of the National Wildlife Refuges.
Friends members are delighted that Refuge staff members are back!

Headquarters is open again, having been shuttered since before Christmas.

What difference did it make to our community to have our Refuge staff on furlough for 35 days?

Here are some of the ways it mattered for us.

Picture
During the shutdown, many Friends groups at other refuges took to using this logo.

Forests

No one could follow through on the Tree Planting contract. Tree planters will have to be rescheduled, around their other projects.

Invasive Species Mitigation

Friends volunteers could not work on the Refuges or use Refuge equipment  as they usually do.


Fire

Opportunities for prescribed burns were lost. Staff could not attend the Southern Area Fire Academy, which is the only opportunity this year for multi-agency training across the SE and for staff to obtain advanced qualifications. Our Vic Doig is usually a lead instructor. Several local fire training tests were cancelled, as was the coastal wetlands fire symposium and the annual incident management team meeting.

Roads and Trails

Repair and grading of roads,  needed after fall storms, was halted. In recent years, the mowing of road shoulders and trails has been carefully managed to promote wildflower enhancement for butterflies and other animals. This opportunity was lost.

Birds

Installation and replacement of signage to protect the Snake Key rookery, the birds and nests, was delayed in a critical month. The Refuge could not provide an airboat as it usually does for the Cedar Key Christmas Bird Count.

Wounded Warriors

Operation Outdoor Freedom's Wounded Warrior 4-day hunt was held on the Refuge in January, however our staff members could not officially attend or represent the Refuge as they have in the past.

Outreach and Interpretive Programs

Each staff member had been scheduled to represent the Refuge at one or more festivals, community events, or public presentations. All their presentations and participation had to be cancelled.

Visitors

Friends were not able to open the Welcome Desk for a month.

Shell Mound

The boardwalk section of the trail, where Friends members walked last March after the Annual Meeting, remains uncleared and work on the boardwalk itself could not begin.

Public Health, Water Quality

At both Shell Mound and Shired Island, public toilets were closed for 35 days. These facilities are important to protect public health, and water quality for the commercial shell fisheries. If another shutdown occurs, the Refuge will seek an exemption to keep them open. It was a saving grace that the region had weekly rain and the the grounds were already supersaturated.

Atsena Otie

An Eagle Scout and his 20-person crew held a maintenance and cleanup project. Refuge staff were prohibited from helping. During a shutdown, furloughed staff may not "volunteer" on any Refuge property.

Vandalism
Illegal Hunting

Staff could not patrol or monitor. The lack of a federal wildlife law enforcement officer for the Refuge exacerbated this problem.

0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    The Refuge is open daily from dawn to dusk.
    The Refuge Manager Andrew Gude can be reached by text or phone at 703.622.3896.
    Hunting Information from the Refuge Manager
    The print version of the  2019-2020 Hunt Regulations Brochure is now available at Refuge headquarters. For an digital version,
    Click on the Photo Below

    Picture


    For Information about getting a Lower Suwannee National Wildlife Refuge Hunt Permit and a Deer Bag Report, Click Here
    To Apply for a Permit to Hunt on the Lower Suwannee Refuge,
    Click Here

    For a copy of the Deer Harvest Log, Click Here
    Contact Us
    Join/Renew/Give

    We have a monthly email News Brief

    Subscribe Here

    Read It Here

    Like us on Facebook

    The official government Refuge websites
    CEDAR KEY NWR
    
    LOWER SUWANNEE NWR

    Archives

    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    July 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014

Picture
Friends of the Lower Suwannee & Cedar Keys National Wildlife Refuges
P. O. Box 532
Cedar Key, FL 32625
friends@friendsofrefuges.org

We are a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization.