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Pine County approves five-year Department of Agriculture agreement for wolf and beaver work on county lands
Summary
The county accepted a work initiation document with the Department of Agriculture to allow trap-and-response work for wolf depredation and beaver removal on county-owned property; the agreement runs five years and is nonbinding, authorizing department staff to work on county property with the county able to revoke agreement at any time.
Dwayne Saar, joined by district supervisor Dakota Byrd, briefed commissioners on proposed work initiation documents (WIDs) that would authorize Department of Agriculture staff to perform wolf depredation response and beaver management on county-owned lands. Saar said the documents would expedite responses by giving permission in advance to trap or remove problem animals on county property rather than asking for signatures each time; the forms are not legally binding contracts and may be voided by either party. "The WIDs are good for 5 years," Saar said.
Commissioners asked procedural questions including why the form shows a placeholder acreage of 1,000 acres; Saar explained that the figure is a simple placeholder used across many counties and is not meant to state the county’s total acreage. Board members discussed the need for the work given local wolf depredation and beaver damage to ditches and infrastructure. A motion to approve the WID and addendum was made, seconded and passed by voice vote.
Staff noted reporting can track the number of animals trapped historically; Saar cited a quick search showing roughly 320 wolves and about 350 beaver trapped in Pine County since 2010 as background information. The WID streamlines responses on county property for events such as verified depredations or beaver dams affecting county ditches.
