Judge to decide on Catalina Island's controversial deer eradication plan
A Los Angeles County judge could soon decide the fate of the controversial plan to eradicate Catalina Island's deer population.
The Catalina Island Conservancy, the organization that manages and protects the area, has long said the deer are an invasive species brought to the island nearly 100 years ago. The nonprofit claimed that the wildlife has created a fire hazard by feasting on the native plant life.
The conservancy believes that its plan to eradicate the deer will allow the ecosystem to rebound.
"Habitat restoration and the well-being of Catalina Island, its residents, its visitors and the native ecosystems found nowhere else, guides everything we do," said Conservancy Interim President and CEO David Solomon.
The controversial initiative to preserve the island's native habitat by killing the wild animals received approval from the California Department of Fish and Wildlife in February but faces stiff opposition from a coalition of residents and wildlife activists.
"We are not going to give up on our contention that this permit, as issued currently, is unlawful in its scope," said Robin Cassidy from the Coalition to Save Catalina Island Deer.
Cassidy's group has joined forces with a broad alliance of wildlife groups and the California Rifle and Pistol Association to sue the conservancy and CADFW.
"We are asking the judge to issue a preliminary injunction halting the slaughter of Catalina Island deer while the issue of whether the restoration management permit was issued lawfully by CA DFW with proper legal review," Cassidy said.
The hearing is scheduled for Sept. 1, the same day that the eradication will begin. The conservancy said it will move forward with the plan "unless legal proceedings require otherwise."
"Decades of scientific research has informed this plan and we are confident in both the science and the process behind the permit," Solomon said. "We are committed to the work ahead to protect and restore Catalina Island for the people and native wildlife that depend on it."
The coalition said it will continue to fight for the deer no matter what the judge decides.
"We are not just the voice of the deer but the voice of the entire ecology of the island itself," Cassidy said. "The island holds a huge place in islanders' hearts but [also] the hearts of millions of visitors that have come to the island as well."
The conservancy said the final resident-only hunting season will start on Oct. 24 and last through Dec. 18.
"The Catalina Island we know and love today exists because generations of people, including families who call the Island home, made hard choices to protect it," the conservancy wrote in a statement. "We share that responsibility today, along with a desire to leave the Island better for the next generation."
