The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will hold a public open house to discuss the future of two federal wildlife refuges located in westernOklahoma at the Butler Community Center, at the intersection of State Highways 33 and 44 on Thursday, May 26 from 3 to 7 p.m.
The open house serves as a scoping forum for the Comprehensive Conservation Plan or management master plan now underway for theWashita and Optima National Wildlife Refuges (NWR). The Comprehensive Conservation Plan will guide management of the refuges for the next 15 years.
Participants at the open house will have an opportunity to discuss management of wildlife, habitats, farming programs, access and public use at the refuges with Refuge Manager David Maple and Planning Team Leader John Slown. "As the Comprehensive Conservation Plan covers the foreseeable future, this is an excellent opportunity to voice your opinions about desired future directions for the refuges," said Slown. "This open house is an important opportunity for Fish and Wildlife Service staff to meet with concerned citizens and gain an understanding of local issues affecting management of the refuges."
For more information about theWashita and Optima NWRs and the planning process, please contact John Slown at 505-248-7458 or David Maple at 580-664-2205.
Washita NWR is located west ofButler at the northern end of Foss Reservoir in Custer County. Optima NWR is located just northwest of Hardesty in theOklahoma panhandle. Both refuges are managed by staff headquartered at Washita NWR. There is no permanent staff at Optima NWR.
2 6ptThe U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is the principal Federal agency responsible for conserving, protecting and enhancing fish, wildlife and plants and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people. The Service manages the 95-million-acre National Wildlife Refuge System, which encompasses 544 national wildlife refuges, thousands of small wetlands and other special management areas. It also operates 69 national fish hatcheries, 64 fishery resources offices and 81 ecological services field stations. The agency enforces federal wildlife laws, administers the Endangered Species Act, manages migratory bird populations, restores nationally significant fisheries, conserves and restores wildlife habitat such as wetlands, and helps foreign and Native American tribal governments with their conservation efforts. It also oversees the Federal Assistance program, which distributes hundreds of millions of dollars in excise taxes on fishing and hunting equipment to state fish and wildlife agencies.
-http://southwest.fws.gov-
