Division of Wildlife Resources staff presented the region’s five-year big-game unit reviews for deer to the Northeastern RAC, explaining that boundary or population objective changes trigger public processes and that chronic wasting disease (CWD) hotspots are shaping targeted management actions.

Why it matters: Unit objectives and CWD responses determine harvest opportunities, herd numbers and disease-control tactics that affect both hunting access and long-term herd health.

DWR biologist Dustin Mitchell said the division reviews unit deer plans every five years and that in the current cycle three units in the region were proposed for population-objective changes, which is why they were presented to the RAC. The division reported known CWD hotspots in Moab and Castle Valley and said targeted hunts beginning this fall will focus on areas on the outskirts of those hotspots to target bucks that move in and out of infected zones in an effort to limit spread.

Mitchell said that despite localized prevalence, the division feels the unit as a whole could still support an increase to boost herd numbers in some places, but that monitoring and adaptive response remain important. He noted historical objective context: the region had previously been managed at a 13,000 objective for years and the division is now considering objectives in the 11,500 range for some proposals.

RAC members expressed trust in local biologists but also concern that CWD uncertainty may require future adjustments. An online respondent summarized in the meeting said they wanted “more deer, less goat tags, and tags cut overall.” The RAC accepted the presentation and a motion to accept the proposal as presented passed unanimously.

Discussion vs. decision: The RAC’s unanimous acceptance at the meeting was to accept the division presentation; if the division adopts boundary or objective changes, the changes will proceed through formal public-notice and unit-plan processes as required. Mitchell said CWD data and monitoring will inform any future changes.

What’s next: Continued range trend monitoring site data will inform next year’s Northeast Region plan updates; unit-level public processes will be used if the division pursues formal boundary or population-objective changes.