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| Lynx Issue 31: Century III Stops Bird Poisoning, Bradys Run Hunts Legally Opposed |
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| Wednesday, 31 December 2008 00:00 |
HAPPY NEW YEAR!In this week's edition:
Century III Moves Its Bird Control Policy into Millennium III In early December, VFA was contacted by a distraught member of the public who is a regular visitor to the Century III mall in West Mifflin. He had just returned from the mall where he had witnessed a sparrow dying horribly. He suspected this was due to poison put out to kill birds who entered the mall. His description of what he had observed certainly fit with the effects of commonly used poisons such as Avitrol. VFA visited the mall to check out the bird situation there and then attempted to contact the mall manager. After some back-and-forth of emails, we touched base with her by phone. The manager, Ms. Gina Mercorelli, admitted that they had been using poison, that they had been led to believe that was the only solution for managing birds inside the building, that she had personally been unaware of the hours of suffering poisons cause, and we were able to discuss with her how to implement humane, non-lethal measures to keep birds out of the mall, and capture and release any who were already inside. The mall recently replaced its dock doors as an energy-saving measure and that will partially help prevent bird entries. VFA has put them in touch with wildlife experts who will be able to help improve on those measures and work with local bird control companies with expertise in humane netting methods. We are happy that this situation could be resolved without resorting to mass emails and on-site protests. However, the fact that this occurred in a high frequentation mall shows how commonly inhumane, lethal methods are used through ignorance or misinformation. Because one member of the public was observant and thought to contact us, the lives of many birds have been saved. Please, always be on the lookout for "evidence" of pesticide use at commercial sites such as malls, and always let us know if you see anything suspicious. The manager of Century III has sent us a pledge that as long as she is manager there, no further lethal measures will ever be used to control birds at Century III. It is our hope that a national organization will encourage Simon Malls, which owns Century III and many other local malls such as Ross Park, to implement a non-lethal-only policy at all its properties nationwide. If you would like to send an email thanking the Century III manager for her humane decision, you can contact her at: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it Donate Corn to Esme Noel King Sanctuary   Last month, VFA was contacted by Mr. David Prather, who lives near Titusville PA. Over the past few years, his large rural property has become a sanctuary for local wildlife, especially deer and turkey, and a haven where they can escape during the hunting season. Mr. Prather and his wife have helped the wildlife get through the winter by providing corn at certain locations throughout the property. Over the past few months however, Mr. Prather has suffered from severe vision problems to the point where he is now legally blind. The Prathers' income has been gravely affected and they can no longer afford to buy winter corn for the wildlife on their property. Because of the acorn shortage this year, wildlife are facing more of a challenge in finding food to get through the winter. The Prathers asked VFA for help and we are passing on their appeal. We are asking for donations of small amounts ($5 would be great!) which you can make via the Paypal button on our website. VFA will make out a check for the donation amount to Mr. Prather's local supplier. If you would rather donate a bag of corn, we can arrange for pick-up and transport if the demand is large enough.Brady's Run Goose Hunt Update: Hunt Being Opposed on Legal Grounds Thank you to all of you who sent emails to the Beaver County Commissioners 2 weeks ago in opposition to these hunts. At the first Brady's Run goose hunt on Monday December 22, hunters killed 12 geese. Although subsequent hunts were planned for Dec. 24, 27 and 29, we have had no news whatsoever of these hunts, and can only hope the geese got the message and kept out of the hunting area (which is not visible since the access road is blocked). VFA has been researching this issue along with the New Jersey-based Coalition to Prevent the Destruction of Canada Geese. It is our belief that these hunts - and indeed all previous public park hunts - are illegal. According to a USDA Fish and Wildlife waterfowl hunting regulation that was brought to our attention by a retired official, no "direct or indirect baiting" is allowed during the 10 days prior to a waterfowl hunt. Given the fact that it is public knowledge that the geese at Brady's Run are fed frequently (and the evidence is on-site in the form of corn and bread bags littering the area), we consider that in order to prevent "indirect baiting" by a well-meaning public, all public areas should be shut down prior to any hunt. Beaver County claims this is impossible due to the fact that a state road runs past the park. It all depends on the USDA's written interpretation of "indirect baiting," which it has never been required to produce until now. Remember that these regulations were originally created to ensure a level of "fair play" in hunting, which only reinforces our claim that these hunts of semi-tame geese run counter to any conceivable notion of "sportsmanship". We are currently awaiting the USDA's interpretation of "indirect baiting". Below are some recent articles on the subject of the Brady's Run hunts. We particularly recommend the Post Gazette letters on the subject (link to the original article in the letters). The comments by "pro-life father", hunter and egg-addling opponent Commissioner Charles Camp provide proof of how absolutely ignorant the commissioners are of non-lethal goose management methods. http://www.timesonline.com http://www.post-gazette.com http://www.timesonline.com/articles City Vista Hearing Next Tuesday As mentioned in our last LYnX, the Pittsburgh City Council hearing over the issue of the City Vista development project is taking place next week. Date: Tuesday, January 6th, 2009 Place: Council meeting room, 5th floor, City County Building on Grant Street, downtown (that's the building opposite a parking lot) Time: 1:30 pm To recap: the City Vista project spans land in Green Tree and the City of Pittsburgh and proposes the development of several luxury condo complexes, including one 7-story building, on the site of a former golf driving range. The man-made pond at the range, which has been there for decades, has become the local water source for many species of wildlife: ducks, deer, turkeys, muskrats... The construction work and removal of the pond will devastate the habitats of wildlife in the area. Not only will that run the risk of sending panicked deer straight toward an already-dangerous ramp on I-279, which is a few hundred yards away, but we can expect that the owners of the new 350,000-dollar condos (if they find any buyers at this time of financial crisis) to cast an unwelcoming eye on herds of deer on their lawns, not to mention the flock of noisy turkeys who cross the area at first light. Wildlife is not the only issue causing people to oppose this project by any means (child safety, traffic, undermining and water supply are also big concerns), and many residents will attend the hearing on Tuesday. Please come out and support them. You do not need to speak unless you wish to. If you do want to speak, one useful message from City residents is that they don't think this kind of development ties in with the Mayor's much-acclaimed "Green Policy". We know this is an uphill battle based on past cases, and developers tend to win these land disputes through sheer persistence, so what we need most here are a large number of people at the hearing to support residents. Please attend if you can. And if you didn't see the YouTube video about City Vista yet, check it out: Petland Protest Saturday, January 10th The Humane Society of the United States is organizing a Petland protest on Saturday, January 10th, 2009. Time: 1-3 PM Location: 6401 Penn Ave, Pittsburgh, PA 15206 (outside the perimeter of the mall where Petland is located) This information is also on our website events calendar. We'll be there... Please attend to support the growing movement against Petland and other clients of puppy mills! |