On April 11, 2023, the NCWRC invoked emergency powers to deal with new cases of Chronic Wasting Disease among the whitetail deer herd in two new counties. According to testing done on hunter-harvested deer from North Carolina’s 2022 hunting season, Cumberland County and Wilkes County are infected with the deadly disease.
As part of the emergency powers, the Commission has named several new counties (or parts of) as Primary or Secondary Surveillance Areas.
In the northwestern section of NC, these new designations will apply in Alleghany, Alexander, Ashe, Guilford, Iredell, Rockingham, Stokes, Surry, Wilkes and Yadkin counties. They will also apply in several eastern NC counties: Bladen, Cumberland, Barnett, Hoke, Robeson and Sampson.
Davie and Forsyth counties will continue as Secondary Surveillance Areas, carrying over from 2022.
So what exactly does that mean for these counties? Mainly, four areas of interest:
Prohibits fawn rehabilitation
Governs the transportation of deer carcasses and carcass parts
Prohibits placement of minerals and salt licks to congregate wildlife at any time
Prohibits the placement of bait, food, or food products to congregate wildlife outside of hunting season
The public can make comments on these rules through April 28 via the agency’s online Comment Portal or by emailing regulations@ncwildlife.org or by snail mail to:
Rulemaking Coordinator, NCWRC
1701 Mail Service Center
Raleigh, NC 27699-1700
For more information about CWD, click here.