Silent Alarm – Tick diseases spreading through Midwest
SILENT ALARM
BY MIKE MCFADZEN
The dreaded deer or black-legged tick is the scourge of outdoor recreation.
Every year, thousands of Midwest residents are exposed to a variety of diseases from tick bites. Wisconsin has been lagging other Midwestern states in the awareness and prevention of Lyme disease and other tick-borne illnesses. Wisconsin is one of the worst states for Lyme disease in the country.
Sen. Rob Cowles (Republican-Green Bay), Sen. Mark Miller (Democrat-Monona), Representative Jeff Mursau (R-Crivitz) and Representative Nick Milroy (D-South Range) released a package of five bills to improve Wisconsin’s approach to the growing problem of Lyme disease.
These bills are game-changers on how Wisconsin will deal with this statewide menace.
According to Legislative Aide Evan Miller, Cowles’ office worked with the DNR, the Medical Society of Wisconsin and the Vector Borne Disease Center at UW-Madison to make these bills as effective as possible.
Bill overviews
LRBs 1758 and 3360 – Requires the DNR to post signs to raise awareness of Lyme disease, inform on how to prevent tick bites and encourage visitors to check for ticks after visits to be posted in a common area, such as the park entrance.
LRBs 1759 and 3359 – Requires the DNR to sell bug spray with DEET in all state parks and forests when possible.
LRBs 2738 and 3358 – Requires the DNR to post information on park brochures to raise awareness of Lyme disease per above bill. The DNR would perform an awareness campaign in May of each year, which is Lyme Disease Awareness Month.
LRBs 1658 and 3355 – Provides an epidemiologist position in the Division of Communicable Disease. The position would be dedicated to vector-borne diseases spread by mosquitoes, ticks and other insects with a specific focus on Lyme disease.
LRBs 1652 and 3362 – Establishes a 16-member tick-borne disease study committee to create recommendations for policy changes on awareness, prevention, surveillance, diagnosis, reporting and treatment of Lyme disease.
If you or your family members have gotten ticks bites or are you concerned about ticks, contact your legislator to support these bills.
In the next issue of Silent Sports, we will take a comprehensive look at tick-related effects on outdoor recreation and what you can do to keep you and your family safe.
Friends of Wisconsin Parks releases legislative updates
The Friends of Wisconsin State Parks (FWSP) work on behalf of individual friends groups and state land users. The 80 friends groups have garnered over $100 million in property improvements and thousands of volunteer hours for state properties. FWSP recently released their key 2019 legislative priorities and action items.
Rangers should be staffed at state properties – FWSP recommends that credentialed rangers be state park employees. The DNR is moving forward with a model in which rangers are Bureau of Law Enforcement employees, rather than state park employees. FWSP met with DNR leadership, including DNR secretary Preston D. Cole earlier this year, citing concerns about safety, customer engagement and costs.
FWSP requested that rangers do less than 100 percent law enforcement and perform more visible park duties as they had in the past. Secretary Cole, State Parks Director Ben Bergy and Chief Warden Todd Schwaller assured FWSP that rangers will be visible, engage park visitors and that law enforcement costs will be reasonable. FWSP will be a monitoring partner to the rangers/parks issue.
The DNR should maintain responsibility for state trail planning – FWSP recommends that the DNR maintain responsibility for the planning of department-owned linear trails.
The DNR has many cooperatively planned and managed trails. The current agreements allow the planning to be the responsibility of the cooperator (typically counties) which has caused some trail use to flip from biking to motorized use based on the local political situation. This is an untenable situation for local friends groups who have made a long-term commitment to these state properties. In order to ensure a statewide systematic approach to recreation opportunities, FWSP recommends that the DNR retains the planning responsibility. FWSP raised this issue with senior DNR leadership who are working with local cooperators to remedy. FWSP will continue monitoring this issue and work with DNR for resolution.
Stewardship and restoring tax-payer support (GPR) for parks – FWSP supports the Knowles/Nelson Stewardship program at current levels, including the segregated monies for friends groups. FWSP also supports restoring GPR for state parks. FWSP voiced support for these programs and requested that an FWSP board member be appointed to the Stewardship Blue Ribbon panel.
FWSP asks that state lands supporters share this information with their legislators and other decision makers.
Editor’s note: Michael McFadzen is the FWSP policy chairman.